This is the ninth article in the series ‘10 Things to Do with Your Family This Christmas Season.’

The Christmas Dinner should be a royal feast — filled with joy and mirth! On Christmas Day we are remembering what God gave to us — the offer of eternal life in Jesus Christ! It should be a day filled with love, joyfulness, thanksgiving, and remembrance for what God has done.

Our hearts should be overflowing with gratitude. It doesn’t matter if you have a big paycheck or a small paycheck — what matters is the attitude of your heart. You can rejoice in little and you can rejoice in much. Job demonstrated that even a man in the poorest condition can bless the Lord. We should never think we have too little for which to be thankful, or too much that we are not grateful.

Feasting is a principle that is found rooted in the Scriptures. The saints of the Bible would celebrate the providential mercies of God with feasts of rejoicing (wedding feasts, sabbath feasts, family feasts, etc.). Such feasts were times for friends and families to gather together, to contemplate the work of God in their lives and consider their hopes and aspirations for the Kingdom of God.

When families come together in a home to feast, it creates heart-warming memories that will be cherished for a lifetime. In circumstances like these we have a powerful opportunity to imprint on our children what the attitude of a Christian should be like: a heart filled with gratitude for what God has provided, both spiritually and familialy.

As you contemplate how you will enjoy your Christmas Feast Day, here are a few items to make sure you’ve added to your event plans:

Food: What is a feast without food? But don’t just fill your table with lots of food, choose good food, high quality food. Spend time to make a fine meal. A feast day isn’t supposed to look like a normal dinner. Find special foods to make and enjoy and use unique ingredients that are a special treat. Make this a meal to remember!

Drink: Bring to the table something special — eggnog, cider, mulled wine, cocoa — something that will rejoice the heart. The Scriptures speak of drink being a blessing to man. Choose a beverage that will pair well with your meal and delight in what God has blessed you with.

Fellowship: There is nothing as sweet as the communion of family and friends rejoicing in the providences of God. Show hospitality with your hearts filled with the love of the gospel. Eat together, drink together and celebrate the birth of Christ together!

Celebrate: Feasting is a great cause of joyful celebration! Join together in dancing, games, singing; all festivities that express your love, joy and delight for our great God.

Remember though, that feasting is to be done out of gratitude for what God has done for us and has given to us. It should never be for self-satisfaction or devolve into gluttony. Our constant thought should be: thanks to God for his goodness and loving kindness in his salvation poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.

When your family comes together in your home this Christmas, adopt a culture and atmosphere of merriment and fellowship. Use hospitality to bring people together for an important purpose — to rejoice in the goodness of the Lord and his abundant blessings!

Further reading on the biblical directives of feasting can be found in this article: Reviving Tithing & Feasting.