(I felt led to write this blog about the Grinch and upon researching some facts this morning, I find that TODAY is the 50th anniversary of the airing of the movie!! Now how cool is that!)
You’ve probably seen the movie, read the book or, no doubt, heard about the green little character who was very grouchy and tried to ruin Christmas for the Whos down in Whoville. He stole presents, became a one-man wrecking crew both physically and emotionally as he destroyed Christmas decorations and yelled at, and scared, the Whoville residents.
I see a lot of grinches this time of year as well. People are so grouchy and complaining about all they have to do. I even hear people say they will be glad when Christmas is over! That is so sad. People complain about:
how much more shopping they have to do;
how they hate to wrap so they just “throw a gift in a bag and slap a nametag on it”;
how their credit card bill goes sky high;
how they dread spending time with people they don’t want to be with;
how crazy people act in traffic and at the stores;
how it’s too much trouble to decorate because they have to take it down in a few weeks anyway.
I know that Christmas can be a very sad time for people as they miss their loved ones who aren’t with us anymore or who are away and can’t be home. But when negativity rolls in and we start complaining, we really should think about the reason for the season and remember that it’s Jesus. His birth is the real celebration. All of the other things are things that we do to ourselves; creating unrealistic expectations based on what we see others do. But it really can be magical even in the midst of sadness and grouchiness.
Ask Jesus to bring you joy for the season for the right reason. Look for the magic in the children’s eyes. Feel the excitement of the season and enjoy the beautiful lights in the midst of the snowy evening. Shop with care to pick out a special gift. Place it in the gift bag with an extra touch of TLC. Budget all year long putting a little money back each week to help with extra spend this time of year and heaven forbid – but we could ask others if they would rather get together for a homemade meal and fellowship instead of exchanging gifts. We could also bring down the amount of gifts purchased overall.
And… we could focus on the most important thing – the coming of the birth of Jesus.
In the movie, the Grinch met Cindy Lou Who and she showed him great love. By showing him this kindness, his heart grew and he found the love of Christmas and started showing kindness to others. He started enjoying the season!
Have you run across the old grinchy attitude this season? Maybe you are the old Grinch to others? If so, I challenge you to sit a while in the stillness of the day and ask God to soften your heart so that you may enjoy the beauty of the season and remember Jesus at this special time. And in doing so, maybe the love from your heart will just touch the heart of an old Grinch and help them see how magical Christmas really can be. Don’t let the devil grinch steal your Christmas. Find the Jesus Joy and relax in His goodness.
Psalm 46:10 – Be still……….and know that I am God.
