In 1987, my family moved from Houston to a small town called Decatur. Back then, going to church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day wasn’t common unless Christmas fell on a Sunday. For us, Christmas was spent at home. But when I moved back to Houston in 2008, I found a culture where gathering for worship on Christmas Eve was a meaningful tradition. It became one of my favorite times to go to church—not out of obligation, but by choice.

Traditions are powerful, but they can also become routine—something we do because "that’s how it’s always been." I call these “meaning adjacent” traditions, where the significance is tied to someone else’s meaning, not our own. If Christmas feels this way, we risk missing the true purpose: celebrating the birth of a Savior. Without Christ, the celebration of Christmas is empty. But with Him, it’s a season filled with hope and life.

What keeps Christmas meaningful is retelling the story of Jesus’ birth. In Luke 2 or Matthew 1-2, we see how people from all backgrounds heard the good news of a Savior and responded by going to worship Him. That’s what Christmas is all about—reconnecting with this story, letting it fill us with awe and wonder, and going to worship Christ the Lord.

For me, attending church on Christmas Eve is a way to honor and retell this story. Whether this tradition is new for you or one you’ve celebrated for years, I invite you to go to church this Christmas Eve or Christmas Day—not for what it might mean to someone else, but to discover the true meaning of Christmas in the birth of a Savior—your Savior. He is Emmanuel, which means “God with us.”