Is Jesus the Reason for the Season?

Below is a piece that I wrote for Christmas last year and I'll admit that the cohesiveness isn't all there but I thought I would share it anyway.

Shoppers rush to and fro with bags, screaming children, tired feet and aching backs and they wonder "Why am I doing all this?" My thoughts exactly, why? Does shopping like a maniac and tearing through the mall have any real meaning behind Christmas? The honest truth is no. Christ is the greatest gift of all and if you think that buying gifts for everyone from great Uncle Charlie to second Cousin Sue is helping you remember Christ then I think we may need to chat. Frankly, we don't even know why we give gifts but we're doing it because it is tradition and many never questions tradition. Jesus isn't the reason many people are giving gifts and to be truthful we give because we think we should. Cut back on the gifts, I would rather get one gift that I'll remember forever than getting a pair of orange toe nail clippers just so that so and so could say that did their duty and bought me a gift.

Santa Clause has become the season's god and he does everything that Jesus could do. Santa flies, knows whether you're good or bad, knows what you want, knows where you live, can talk to animals and can deliver gifts to every house in the world within on night which means he does that in mili-seconds because it's virtually impossible otherwise. How many children believe in Santa apposed to those who believe in Jesus Christ? The thing is, Jesus is the only person who can do all the things that Santa allegedly does. To many children today, Jesus truly isn't the reason for their celebration. Maybe it's time we began telling children more about Jesus and less about Santa.

At many stores if you asked where the Nativity scenes were they guy would stare at you and say "Oh, if we got 'em there probably in the back but we do have Santa lawn decorations right here." I think Christ is in the back of the store and many people's hearts and we've pushed him out of his holiday. My suggestion would be to those of us who celebrate Christmas as a holiday to celebrate Christ birth, remember that the gifts, the lights, and the decorations really aren't the reason for the holiday but Jesus should be. The Nativity scene is is in the back of the store, next to a box of recalled Christmas tree lights, would you care to bring it to the front?