FHE - Santa and the Savior

An absolutely HUGE thanks to the amazing people on Pinterest that helped me put this sensitive and critical family home evening lesson together. I had been so stressed out about how to break the news to Hayden about Santa Claus. Hayden has such Christlike faith, such trust that he believes entirely what he is taught. Which is great but he has been teased for still believing in Santa so I knew the time had come to explain it all to him. 

 

As I searched pintrest, I found these two amazing ladies that made me job such a breeze.

First I found this link:Symbols of Christmas from an amazing lady and copied her amazing family home evening where she held up a picture of a door and used the following descriptions and had the children guess who was at the door.

• he sees you when you're sleeping. He knows when you're awake. He knows if you've been bad or good.
• he has a beard and a kind face
• he spent his life giving to others
• he's often pictured in red and/or white clothes
• he loves little children
• he gives the very best gifts
• you can never see him, but you can feel him
• he gives us a wonderful, special warm feeling
• he can get into our homes even if the doors are locked
• he has special, wonderful powers
• we want to give gifts back to him, but he doesn't need anything we could buy; he just wants us to give to other people. (My kids have been talking about giving a present to Santa.)
• I ended with, "He encourages us to be good so we will be ready when he comes."

I then created my own version of a letter to Hayden after reading this amazing blog of mom who wrote a letter to her daughter explaining Santa Claus.  Sweet Explanation of Santa's role 

Hayden,

You are growing up so fast. I watch you each day and am amazed by you. I am in awe of your goodness, your Christlike faith, your sincere desire to do good. You have been blessed with a true Christlike gift to see people and treat people as the Savior would want you to. You always come home from school and tell me how you played with the new student. At the book exchange, when you went with 20 books to exchange for new ones and came home with only 2 books, I asked why and you said that at the book exchange that there were a lot of kids without books and they were sad. You went and handed the tickets you received to everyone to make sure they were able to receive a book which left you with two. You were so happy with your new books and were happy to share with others. I watched as you provided other classmates with snacks using your own money. You always make sure that no one goes without. You always notice if someone doesn't have something and want to share what you have been given. You have learned to find joy in others happiness, not just your own. 

When I think about last Christmas, my favorite moment will always be, when we pulled all of your presents out from under the tree. We told you that there were two boys that would not have Christmas and we were going to try and help out. We lined up all of your wrapped presents from mom and dad and you shook each one, guessed what was in it, and lovingly chose a gift to give up. You didn't complain. You simply said, "I hope this boy likes this gift as much as I would have." Dad and I could not have been more proud of you. You were genuinely interested in the boys' need and hoped you chose a gift they would like. You quickly jumped up and ran into the other room. Dad and I were talking to each other saying how proud we were of you. You came out of your room carrying your brand new remote control helicopter that you had just won at the raffle and were so excited about. We asked what you were doing and your response was, "Didn't you say there were two boys that didn't have Christmas? We can't give one a gift and leave the other one out." At that moment, I caught a glimpse of who you truly are in our Savior's eyes. He gave you a great gift Hayden. You have developed this amazing talent of yours at such a young age. 

Each time I think of Christmas, I think of this moment. It touched my heart so deeply. You showed genuine Christlike love for someone you did not even know. Your heart wants to help others to become happy and to feel our Savior's love. 

That's why we think it is time for you to know the secret. Time for you to understand how the true magic of Christmas happens. 

You have asked Dad and I if Santa is real. If he exists. 

Santa is bigger than any one person, and his work has gone on longer than any of us has lived. What he does is simple but it is powerful. He teaches children how to have belief in something they can't see or touch.

It's a big job, and it's an important one. Throughout your life, you will need this capacity to believe: in yourself, in your friends, in your talents and in you family. You'll also need to believe in things you can't measure or even hold in your hand. I am talking about love, that great power that will light your life from the inside out, even during its darkest, coldest moments.

Santa is a teacher, and I have been his student, and now you know the secret of how he gets down all those chimneys on Christmas Eve: he has help from all the people whose hearts he's filled with joy and love. 

With full hearts, people like me and Daddy, take our turns helping Santa do a job that would otherwise be impossible. So no, there is no one Santa. 

Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness. Dad and I are on his team and now you are too. You have developed enough love in your heart, enough faith in our Savior, enough kindness to be on Santa's team with Daddy and I. 

Our jobs now are bigger than ever. This is a secret that is not to be shared with anyone. They can only know when the time is right for them. But, because of the incredible person that you have become, you are ready to understand fully that Santa helps children and adults understand and grasp our Savior's love.

I am so excited for this Christmas when you, too, can help bring the magic of Christmas and Santa to life for others. And most importantly to help them remember that the true gift of Christmas is ultimately the Savior's birth and His life. Santa, the Savior and the entire Spirit of Christmas help us to remember the most important thing that Jesus taught us and that is to love one another. 

I love you, Hayden!

Love always and forever, 

Mom

Thanks to these amazing women, I was able to really express to Hayden how I feel about Christmas. Why I feel it is so important. Why Christmas spirit is a special feeling that comes when the entire world gathers together in celebrating the Savior, focusing on others instead of themselves and everyone truly tries to help others and meet their needs. It is time when the Holy Ghost is able to touch our hearts deeply, testify to us of the truthfulness of the Christmas story and show us how to really love and take care of one another.

To the amazing two women that were on Pintrest: thank you! I am so grateful for your insight of how to explain well something I cherish.

FYI: Hayden embraced it all with love and excitement. And, although he told me his heart was sad and he wanted to cry, he also felt the great responsibility he has to help others out and be a true helper to both Santa and the Savior this beautiful Christmas season!