The Family Teams Podcast 3 Ideas To Build Your Family Team This Christmas
Oct 30, 2025
Jefferson Bethke, an author and speaker focused on Christian faith and family values, shares his passion for Christmas as a time to strengthen family bonds. He discusses creating lasting family traditions rooted in identity and how to make meaningful gift-giving experiences for children. Jefferson emphasizes the importance of Advent and its connection to scripture, encouraging families to use light and sensory practices. He also suggests giving kids specific roles for the season, making them feel engaged and purposeful.
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Christmas As A Season Of Meaning
- Christmas works as a season, not just a day, giving families time to build meaning and rhythms.
- Jefferson Bethke says the seasonality and light/dark symbolism make Christmas an ideal 'training wheel' for family traditions.
Build Traditions From Family Identity
- Create multi-generational traditions that reflect your family's identity and experiment by keeping what works.
- Jefferson Bethke says drop failing ideas, stack the successful ones, and build traditions that act as generational glue.
Use Light To Make Moments Sacred
- Use Advent's focus on light vs. darkness to create sensory family practices like candlelighting or walks.
- Jefferson Bethke advises turning lights off and adding candles to make short family moments feel sacred and memorable.