Smell the aroma of Christmas

Does your family get a live Christmas tree or an artificial one each year? Our family has been putting up artificial trees each year for years now. In fact, as an adult, I have never had a live Christmas tree in our home. Our kids have never had the experience of going to the tree lot to pick out the perfect tree. Having a real tree is a thing of the past for most families, but I remember as a little girl how much joy it brought me and my family each Christmas. 

This year on the week before Christmas, my son wanted to experience a new smell and sight in our home. In addition to the artificial trees, he wanted to get a real one so that we could smell the aroma of Christmas in our home. We agreed to let him bring one home and let it light up and bring that real, old-fashioned, and familiar smell of Christmas to our home.

 We had a strand of leftover lights and garlands just waiting for this little tree. We even found a tree skirt to dress it up. The bow at the top finished it to perfection. As we stepped back and looked at the completed tree, we felt the joy of Christmas come alive inside of us. This tree was small, but alive in a way that brought joy to our hearts!

We could see through this little tree that big joy comes when you take time to enjoy the real things without rushing around to make everything perfect. The rush and bustle of the holidays takes away the true meaning of this day when Christ, our Savior was born. To experience the true aroma of Christmas, come alive with Jesus inside your heart and make Jesus the heart and smell of your Christmas! Jesus is REAL and ALIVE just like this tree when you let Him come alive inside of you.