Nativity community
It’s November, and the holidays are quickly approaching. I’ve seen Christmas decorations in Hobby Lobby since July and in Target since mid-October. It seems like the Christmas season, and all its commercialization starts a little earlier each year.
At Hillspring, staff and volunteers have been planning for Nativity. This year the Living Nativity performances will be at 6:00 pm and 7:30 pm each night from December 18-22. We will have hot cocoa, kettle corn (new this year!), donkeys, music in the Courtyard of Hope, as well as the return of the indoor scene.
Last winter was the first year my family and I participated in the Nativity. We've attended many performances over the years, but since we started worshipping at Hillspring, we have wanted to be involved. Damon, Luke, and I were shepherds, and Colin and Maia were in the King’s entourage.
We arrived at Hillspring at 5:00 pm for dinner. A wonderful group of volunteers cook dinner for everyone involved in Nativity each night. After dinner, we put on our shepherd costumes and went outside for the performance. We stood outside around a fire with friends and walked down the hill on cue. Each performance ended with bowing to the baby Jesus. That's it – no acting skills are required. Between performances, we could go back inside for hot cocoa, coffee, and cookies or stay by the fire and make s'mores. After the night's final performance, we went back inside, hung up our costumes, and stayed for hot soup if we were cold.
Participating in Nativity is an experience like no other. We met and developed new friendships with other Hillspring worshippers, ate dinner, and stood around a fire. It was fun and stress-free. We were not always together as a family, but we were all involved.
It was also a wonderful worship opportunity. I don’t think you can participate in Nativity and not think about the birth of Jesus. There isn’t much artificial light for the outdoor scene, so the stars and fires shine. It is peaceful, beautiful, and commercialization-free, representing Christmas's true meaning.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, this is my persuasion piece to get involved with Nativity this year. But don’t just take my word for it. Here's what others had to say.
"After missing Living Nativity in 2020, it was such a celebration last year to get together as a church family, share meals (plus soup and cookies), huddle around campfires, and hang out with livestock. It was the first time we could get our whole family involved, from lowly shepherds to royal entourage, and our toddler still talks about seeing the angel from our shepherds' camp. We look forward to making this an ongoing part of our Christmas traditions." -Aaron and Bettina Pickett
“My husband, Eric, and I had been talking about how our family gets caught in the consumerism and commercialization of the holidays. The results of getting conned into the culture of consumerism are the mad dashes to stores, the many orders to Amazon, and feeling overwhelmed with the mountains of presents to wrap. What about creating fond family memories by making Eric's family's pecan tart recipe or watching our favorite Christmas movies?
Last year we reduced our consumerism by buying fewer presents and simplifying the decorations in our house. It took me two years and lots of journal writing to sell my Dept. 56 Dickens Village! However, we found more time and energy to focus on the activities that were meaningful to us, thus, less stress and anxiety. By participating in the Nativity at Hillspring, we truly appreciated and reflected on the meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. Performing each night reinforced our hard decision to resist the siren song of the secular culture and instead listen to the voice of God and focus on what is truly important. Being surrounded by other participants gave us a sense of fellowship and brought about the long-sought-after emotions of peace, joy, and love.
On Christmas morning, my husband misplaced the store-bought card he had for me. Instead, he made a Christmas card and on the front was a picture of our family from the Nativity. Inside the card, he wrote:
Merry Christmas Monique! "This has been one of the most enjoyable Christmas seasons I have had in a long time. I am grateful for your willingness to step out with me to seek a new church home. I am looking forward to many more peaceful Christmas seasons (God willing)."
Love always, Eric
It was the best Christmas season we had, and we will continue to be a part of the Nativity at Hillspring church.” – Eric & Monique Franke
“Last year was our first time participating in the Living Nativity at Hillspring. Though we had heard of the Living Nativity for years, we were excited to be participants because it has been a staple in our community for such a long time. During the practices, we were assured that the experience would be fun. Our family joined another family at a campfire as shepherds, which led to some great bonding that strengthened our friendships and made us look forward to each night of performances. Aside from dinner, cookies, and hot chocolate, having soup after each event added to the cozy communal feeling. Our family agreed it was a great opportunity to bond and be with our church family. It felt special to create a meaningful experience for the Tri-Cities community and to know that people would feel connected to the story of Jesus' birth and have a true Christmas experience related to the story of Jesus' birth. We are now excited about our family's experience with the Living Nativity this year.”
-Rob and Maria Gutierrez
If participating in Nativity sounds appealing, please talk to any of the staff or Jan Taylor. We’d love to have you join us!
In Christ,
Nicole Jansen
Ministry Coordinator