Stardate: -317981.64

As I woke up this morning, Christmas felt like just another day. But there's something that makes this day, for many people, one of the best days of the year. It's not because of Santa, or snow, or Jesus, or gifts, or family, though all of those things may help.

What can make this day great, just like any other day you've ever lived, is your attitude.

I know this because for a long time, I resented Christmas and didn't enjoy it very much. It is the onset of winter in many ways, and for many years my on-again, off-again struggle with depression came to a head during Christmastime. I also dislike it for what I think it represents to our culture: Commercialization, secularization, busyness and stress. But more than all that, I just chose not to like it.

Well, I don't resent Christmas anymore. I make a point of relaxing and giving myself a chance to reflect on my life, and especially what the Father has done for me in sending Jesus. I refuse to let Christ get lost in the holiday. I resolve to live in such a way that others might feel that I am a small part of God's gift to them, like I was last year when I spent much of my Christmas break doing hurricane relief work in Mississippi.

So whatever you may think about Christmas, remember this: When it's over, and you wake up on the next day you have to work or go to school and it is really is just another day, remember that what defines how good that day is for you is not circumstances, luck, other people, or even God. What defines your experience of every day is your attitude.