What comes to mind when you think of Christmas? Decorated trees, shopping, colorful lights, expense, cookies, debt, fatigue, joy, football games on TV, Christ’s saving power?

After a flurry of phone calls from people feeling sad and lonely about the Christmas season, I got to thinking about what states of mind would cause one to feel depressed when there is such great reason to celebrate. And I decided it came down to how one thought of Christmas in the first place.

Over the centuries, a lot of mortal traditions and practices have been added onto Christmas. Today, in my culture anyway, Christmas is often associated with shopping, buying and giving presents, parties, get-togethers with family, meals, desserts, colorful decorations, and yes, a few church services celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas Eve. The spiritual significance of the day often gets lost in the preponderance of commercialism and society surrounding the event, though.

I reasoned, that if one’s concept of Christmas becomes diluted and besieged by the social and commercial aspects commonly associated with the day, it’s easy to see how one might get depressed and demoralized about Christmas.

For example, if one associates Christmas with family get-togethers, and that one has no family, they might feel left out or excluded from something good. Or, if one associates Christmas with receiving presents from others, and doesn’t get any presents, they might feel forgotten and left out. And the list goes on…

Anytime one feels lack, loss or deprivation, it’s typically a sign that hope is being placed in something material that doesn’t work out.

So, what’s the remedy?

It’s to move hope and expectancy from the material to the spiritual.

Christmas is about the coming of Christ. It’s true significance has nothing to do with parties and meals and cookies and drink. It’s a spiritual event that occurs within, in a very private place between us and God.

The birth of Jesus was fulfillment of the prophesied Messiah—the Word made flesh—the healing power of God apparent in a form that humanity could understand at the time. Today, Christ is at work in the form of divine Science leavening human consciousness around the planet with healing spiritual truth.

Christmas day serves to remind us of Christ’s on-going activity, saving mankind from sin, disease and death beliefs.

So how do we participate in the fullness of Christmas? Through quiet prayer, most likely, turning to God and striving to understand Christ better and the benefits received from Christ loving and caring for us.

When catching the true spirit of Christmas, it’s impossible to be lonely for Christ fills the void with spiritual understanding and love that meets the deepest human needs.

Getting together with family or friends is certainly a fine activity. Nothing wrong with that! But if one is not part of an active social circle, that doesn’t mean they can’t have just as joyous a Christmas day as anyone else. Christ is what makes the day special, and Christ speaks and companions each of us no matter where we are or what kind of circumstances we face.

True Christmas is not a social activity, but a spiritual event everyone has been invited to. Accept the invitation and enjoy the company!

Lots of love…