When the Fire Took Christmas: How God Shifted My Heart

By Michelle

I didn’t stop celebrating Christmas because someone told me to.
I didn’t stop because I felt guilty.
I didn’t stop because I was trying to be different.

My story began with a fire.

A garage fire took everything.
All the decorations.
All the lights.
All the ornaments that carried memories.
Everything that made the house feel “like Christmas.”

I used to love Christmas.
The lights. The warm atmosphere. The togetherness.
The Hallmark movies and those old Christmas cartoons that made everything feel peaceful.

So when the fire happened, I expected to feel devastated.
But I didn’t.

I did miss it — but not deeply.
And at the same time, I just went with it.
I didn’t try to replace any of it.
I didn’t go out and buy more.

My heart was already shifting.

Before the fire, I had already been learning that Christmas wasn’t something God ever commanded.
That Jesus wasn’t born in December.
That most of what we see in Christmas culture came from man-made traditions.

And when I learned that, something inside me wanted truth more than tradition.

Not because tradition is always bad.
Not because joy is wrong.
Not because celebration is sinful.

But because I love God — and when I love someone, I want to love them the way they want to be loved.

I wasn’t rejecting joy.
I was reaching for truth.

I didn’t stop because I thought Christmas was “evil.”
I stopped because I realized it wasn’t something God ever asked for.

Still — I want to be honest:

The feeling of Christmas… is real.
The warmth is real.
The joy is real.
The softness in people’s hearts… that part is real.

I still like the old cartoons.
I still sometimes watch Hallmark movies.
Not for Santa.
Not for the holiday.
But for the feeling of love, giving, and peace.

Those feelings weren’t the problem.
The source was.

What God began to show me was this:

Joy doesn’t have to come from a man-made holiday.
Love doesn’t have to be tied to a date.
Peace doesn’t have to be seasonal.

God never removed celebration —
He simply redirected it back to Him.

There are Biblical celebrations God did establish — and they hold the same joy, meaning, and togetherness that people look for during Christmas… but they are rooted in truth, not tradition.

So if you’re feeling torn…
If you feel something shifting…
If your heart wonders if there’s more…

You’re not alone.

This is not something you have to force.
You don’t have to rush.
You don’t have to throw everything away overnight.

Just ask God:

“Lord, how do You want to be honored in my life?”

Because the Bible says:

“Seek, and you will find.”
(Matthew 7:7)

Not “maybe.”
Not “if you’re holy enough.”

You will.

God doesn’t remove joy.
He restores it to its true foundation.

This isn’t the end of celebration.
This is the beginning of truth leading joy.

— Michelle 💛