I adore books.  Holding them.  Smelling them.  Reading them.  To me, holding a book is not unlike embracing that steaming first cup of coffee in the morning.  I love the feel of it in my hands.  I may harbor a bit of a tactile addiction to both books and coffee.  I my world, there’s no shame in that!

My living room used to be a place where the shelves held many a breakable item, and indeed there are still fragile chotchkies around my living room, although I wouldn’t necessarily deem them as worthless, as several are meaningful.  A handful, fragile.

But then there are the books.  For as much as I can, I have lined my living room shelves with books (with the treasured editions securely housed above the reach of little hands).  They add color, they add discussion, they add interest.  My children see them.  They see me touch them.  They see new one’s, worn one’s, mommy’s favorite one’s.  I want them to see books as a part of the room we call the “living room”.  We live with books.

On one low shelf, perfect for little hands, I shelf the Christmas books.  As a family who follows Christ, Christmas books are a staple during the month of December.  And January, and February, and March . . . do you see where this is going?

Our Christmas books do not hold the same status as our Christmas decorations which come out but once a year, adorning our home simply for the season. 

Rather, our Christmas book collection has a permanent home, on that attainable shelf in our living room, year-round.  See, as Christians, we talk a lot of talk about Jesus being the reason for the season.

I’d like to challenge that.

For believers, Jesus is the reason for ALL THE SEASONS.  So why not keep those beautiful stories about His birth out and about all year round, so that when Christmas comes back around next year we’re not at the same place – struggling to find the meaning and the joy and the REASON for the season?  Is there anything wrong with the Christmas library joining the ranks of the permanent home library, rather than being packed away for 12 long months like the ornaments and Christmas dishes and the trillion stuffed snowmen we have hanging around the house?

I don’t think so.  Give them a shelf. 

Jesus is Hope.  Not merely in December.  But rather, year-round. 

What is your favorite Christmas story to read to your children?