Christmas Holidays: Tis the Season to Give to Me, Me Me Me Me Meee, Me Mee, Mee Meee

First off, is it the Christmas Season? What exactly are we celebrating here? The birth of Christ? OK, when was that? No one knows. Dec. 25th was arbitrarily assigned, but it's not his birthday. And if you're going to celebrate the birth of Christ that means you're celebrating his life, his gospel. And what is the Gospel of Christ? Feeding his sheep, taking care of the lonely, the downtrodden, the destitute, the poor and wanting. The best way to do that? Volunteer your time, money, and efforts to coming to the aid of the needy.

Now the problem I have with Christmas isn't so much that people are not doing what Christ would want them to do, but more so that it's inappropriately labeled. Because few are observing Christ's wishes or obeying his gospel. Certainly family is involved and that's nice that's primarily Christ's gospel, but just a fraction of it. But what do the majority celebrate or think about when feeling the "Christmas Spirit" and looking forward to the holidays? It's got a lot more to do with lights, decorations, time off, visiting family and friends, and opening presents than it has to do with ladling soup at the homeless shelter. One guy on Facebook kind of sums up what I'm getting at. His post stated "I'm having a great time. Lost of time off. Traveling. Visiting friends and family. I'm having a great time." Nothing wrong with that, unless you're trying to keep the message of the season's namesake alive.

So if tradition says it's about these more self-centered thins, then we can call it the Holiday Season, as I saw painted on a pizza shop window owned by Koreans to include everyone. But we shouldn't call it Christmas if the majority of people focus on parties, visiting family and friends, decorations, and giving presents. We could call Dec. 25th Present Day or borrow the term Boxing Day from the Brits, which came about as the upper class gave gifts to the lower class. Kinda Christmassy. And we could have it mean a day of gift giving in general and keep all the lights and decorations and tradition as is.

But if people are stubborn and they don't want to throw out the Christmas label, then I suggest a few things to keep the spirit of Christ's message and desires alive.

Here's a few things you can do to get away from the me, me, me, me, meeee, me, mee, mee, meeeee of our current holiday season. These are all things that I have done over the years to keep the spirit of giving alive, at least in my heart and the hearts of my family.

1. Don't Give Presents.

That's right. The last two Christmases we've not given presents or kept it to a limit. Indulgence is certainly not Christ-like. Or, if you like, donate your money somewhere or to a good cause. Doesn't necessarily have to be a charity. You can buy someone you know something that they really need. Like some food or clothing. Or you could help find someone a job. That's a nice present.

2. Donate Your Time to a Homeless Shelter.

What's this? Yes, you can do the soup kitchen thing. I've helped on Thanksgiving prepare and distribute food downtown LA for the homeless. Funny that I ran into an actor who I'd met on the set of a movie I was in (this was back when I was doing the Hollywood thing). I hadn't seen him in six months but he remembered my name. I knew he was a Christian and wasn't too surprised to find that he hadn't focused so much on himself that he'd forgotten my name. A true self-less Christian man.

Or you could stay over at a homeless shelter, if you can stand the noise of 30 people snoring. They need volunteers to help distribute food and just keep things safe and in order during the night. Maybe not a good thing for women. But I really enjoyed the experience and learned a lot. I discovered one woman who was working two jobs and going to college at night. She told me that it wasn't that she didn't work hard but that she just didn't have the three or four thousand down payment needed to get an apartment. I met a lot of hardworking, good people who were just down on their luck.

3. Volunteer to Keep Your City Looking Good

I've worked with others on cleanup LA projects in which volunteers are gathered over several weekends to plant flowers and trees, pick up trash, paint schools, etc. It's a lot of fun if you do it with a large group of friends, and you get to meet a lot of kind, giving like-minded people. Lots of good memories here.

4.  The Intangibles

How about opening more doors for people or smiling more often. Maybe while out on the streets you can just look for things to do to help people. It doesn't always work out, but it's all in the effort. Just last week during one of my walks I spotted a homeless man and approached him. I wanted to give him some money, but he ran away from me yelling "What do you want from me? What did I ever do to you?" It really helped me to understand what the homeless go through that they are accosted often for loitering or being a vagrant. Another life lesson.

Another time while walking I noticed some suspicious activity behind a chiropractic office. I didn't have any money on me, so I walked into a convenience store and asked the manger if he could call the police. He didn't want to get involved, so he gave me fifty cents and sent me across the street to a pay phone. I called, reported, left my contact information and to this day don't know specifically what happened, but I do know that that office did not get broken into that day.

There's a lot we can do during this holiday season and all year round to protect, encourage, and watch out for our fellow brothers and sisters. It's just too easy to sit around and indulge ourselves in eating and entertainment. It's really sad that more and more people get stuck behind their doors with television, computers, and games and don't get out to help each other more. It may just be the thing we need not only to follow the gospel of Christ but to heal this ailing country and world.

God bless and may the spirit of Christ be with all of you this holiday season and all year long.