Blockin' Around the Christmas Tree • followHIM Favorites • December 22 - December 28 • Come Follow Me

Summary

Episode Overview

Episode Title: Blockin' Around the Christmas Tree • followHIM Favorites
Release Date: December 18, 2025
Hosts: Hank Smith & John Bytheway
Main Theme:
This special Christmas episode of FollowHIM Favorites focuses on finding joy and meaning in difficult holiday experiences, and how these moments can inspire new traditions and spiritual growth. In a brief but poignant segment, hosts Hank Smith and John Bytheway share a story from Brother Gabe Reed (a member of the Sunday School General Presidency) connecting the loss of tangible Christmas gifts to protecting and prioritizing covenant relationships with God.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Brother Gabe Reed’s Christmas Story (00:17 – 02:34)

• Background:
  • John reads a heartfelt story from the December 2025 Liahona magazine.
  • Brother Gabe Reed, who grew up in American Samoa as one of 13 siblings in a small three-bedroom home, recalls how Christmas was always a special time for their family, focused on Christ, service, and giving.
• The Incident:
  • One Christmas, after their parents worked hard and saved to buy each child a gift, all the presents were stolen right before Christmas.
  • Quote (John Bytheway reading Reed):

    "Every single present had been stolen. Someone had broken in during the night and taken them all." (01:07)

• A New Family Tradition:
  • In response to the theft, Brother Reed’s family began sleeping around the Christmas tree every year to protect the gifts.
  • This “funny and tragic” tradition became a powerful symbol for the family.

2. Spiritual Takeaways: Protecting What Matters (01:45 – 02:34)

• Safeguarding Gifts vs. Safeguarding Covenants:
  • Brother Reed draws a powerful connection: just as his family guarded their physical gifts, we need to prioritize and protect our covenant relationship with Heavenly Father.
  • Quote (John Bytheway, reading Reed):

    "It reminded me how important it is to safeguard and prioritize our covenant relationship with Heavenly Father. Just as we protect our gifts… we need to protect and prioritize our covenant relationship." (01:44)

• Guidance in Uncertainty:
  • Reed emphasizes using covenants as a guiding compass through major life decisions (school, dating, missions, careers).
  • Quote:

    "When I feel that way, I let my covenants guide me. What do your baptismal and temple covenants say to do? What blessings has God promised you? When you prioritize your covenant relationship, everything else begins to fall into place." (02:03)

• President Nelson’s Counsel on Joy:
  • Quoting President Nelson:

    “The joy we feel...has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives. Feeling the Savior’s love and joy is certainly the best Christmas gift we can receive.” (02:20)

3. Hosts’ Reflections & Practical Application (02:34 – 03:18)

• Turning Trials into Traditions:
  • Hank reflects on how it's "tough to have that all taken from you" but admires how the family turned adversity into a positive, memorable tradition (02:46).
  • John summarizes the story as “rough start, great finish,” emphasizing resilience and gratitude (02:35).
• Universal Message:
  • The hosts encourage listeners to “guard the tree” and more importantly, “guard your covenant relationship.” (02:57)
  • Hank humorously suggests:

    “Next time something goes wrong at Christmas, I might say, well, got a new tradition now.” (03:09)

• Encouraging Listeners:
  • John invites listeners facing a difficult holiday to consider starting a new tradition in response, turning a negative into a source of strength and meaning (03:18).

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Brother Gabe Reed (via John Bytheway):

  "It reminded me how important it is to safeguard and prioritize our covenant relationship with Heavenly Father. Just as we protect our gifts… we need to protect and prioritize our covenant relationship." (01:44)

• President Russell M. Nelson (quoted):

  "The joy we feel...has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives. Feeling the Savior’s love and joy is certainly the best Christmas gift we can receive." (02:20)

• Hank Smith:

  “Next time something goes wrong at Christmas, I might say, well, got a new tradition now.” (03:09)

---

Important Timestamps

• 00:17: John introduces and tells Brother Reed’s Christmas story.
• 01:44: Spiritual comparison between protecting presents and safeguarding covenants.
• 02:20: Quotation from President Nelson on joy and focus.
• 02:35: Discussion of turning trials into blessings/traditions.
• 03:09: Humor about making new traditions when things go wrong.

---

Tone & Style

• The episode is warm, conversational, and uplifting, with an emphasis on spiritual resilience, personal experiences, and application for listeners.
• Both hosts use humor, empathy, and genuine admiration for the faith demonstrated by Brother Reed's family.

---

Summary

“Blockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” uses a touching true story to explore how difficult moments—especially during the holidays—can inspire meaningful new traditions and help us refocus on what matters most. Through the lens of one family’s loss and subsequent tradition, Hank Smith and John Bytheway encourage listeners to protect their covenants with the same vigilance, promising that joy comes by focusing on Christ, regardless of external circumstances. This heartfelt episode offers both practical and spiritual insights perfect for the Christmas season.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, Merry Christmas here from Follow Him. This is Follow Him Favorites where John and I share a single story to go with each week's lesson. John, it's the Christmas episode on Follow him and you have told me that you have a Follow him favorite a story.

[B]

I do. Hank and I got it from the December 2025 Liahona magazine and it was really funny because I was reading it with my wife and the next day we met the author. It's brother Gabe Reed who's in the Sunday School General Presidenc and we didn't know. I felt really cool saying, yeah, I read your thing yesterday. This is what he said. This is quite the story. I grew up in American Samoa as one of 13 siblings. All of us lived in a small three bedroom home in the village of it looks like Leone. Maybe it's Leone Lyon Christmas was always special for our family. A time to reflect on the birth and the atonement of Jesus Christ and a time to serve and give. One Christmas season, after working hard and saving up, my parents bought each one of us a gift and placed them under the tree. We were so exc but before Christmas arrived, my older brother woke us up one morning with devastating news. Every single present had been stolen. Someone had broken in during the night and taken them all. From that heartbreaking experience, Brother Reed said a new tradition was born. Every Christmas after that, we'd sleep around the Christmas tree to protect our gifts. As funny and as tragic as that memory is, it taught me more than to be cautious about Christmas gifts. It reminded me how important it is to safeguard and prioritize our covenant relationship with Heavenly Father. And then he said this. Just as we protect our gifts or we protected them, we need to protect and prioritize our covenant relationship. Many of us face big decisions about school, dating, careers, missions. It's easy to feel uncertain or inadequate. When I feel that way. I let my covenants guide me. What do your baptismal and temple covenants say to do? What blessings has God promised you? When you prioritize your covenant relationship, everything else begins to fall into place, President Nelson shared. And we've said this multiple times. The joy we feel. And joy is such a great Christmas word has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives. Feeling the Savior's love and joy is certainly the best Christmas gift we can receive.

[A]

Can you imagine?

[B]

Sleeping around the tree from then on became this tradition. We both talked about it. I called it rough start, great finish. You called it trial or blessing or both.

[A]

Yeah, that's something. So tough to have that all taken from you and then to turn it around and say, this is a new tradition in our family. We guard the tree.

[B]

We guard the tree. And then he decided we gotta guard our covenant relationship. That way, we're gonna surround each other and surrender, ground our relationship and to protect us. I love it.

[A]

I love it. Next time something goes wrong at Christmas, I might say, well, got a new tradition now.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Wow. That's absolutely inspiring. I bet someone listening is going, oh, my Christmas is going bad. What could I do to make a tradition out of this? I love it. We hope you'll join us on our full podcast. It's called Follow Him. You can get it wherever you get your podcast. We're with sister Bonnie Cordon. This week she's out in Virginia serving as the president of a univers diversity. There, she talks about Christmas. She tells a story about a gift her husband gave her that is just wonderful. It's. It's really just a tender, very vulnerable story. Then come back next week because it is time for a brand new year of Follow him favorites.