It’s Hard to Be a Grinch
Every year I get accused of being a Grinch. I have the shirt, I read the book, and I watched all the movies.
So, I never let my kids open their presents before breakfast on Christmas morning. So, I have threatened to make my kids give their presents away if they whine about getting socks. So, I ridicule the person who puts no fewer than five Santas, two manger scenes, and a ridiculous number of candy canes in their front yard. So, I complain about having to sit through yet another music program on bleachers that have no back support. So, I offer commentary about this being the only time of year that the secular station plays more sacred music than the “Christian” station. So, I whine about the snow and long for a warm beach on Christmas. So, I hate hanging off a ladder to put up lights that I will take down three weeks later. So, I point out the materialism, the romanticism, and the pressures that we put on each other between the fourth Thursday of November and January 6th.
Does this make me a Grinch? Maybe.
Have you ever thought of the Grinch as a prophet? Jesus said, “A prophet is not respected in his hometown.” I would suggest that prophets are asked to speak truth into culture. Do you not agree that there plenty of cultural issues that have been absorbed into the Christmas season that need someone to speak Truth into them? Should a prophet not address the romanticism, traditionalism, and materialism that we have readily embraced as a culture?
I believe that so many of the pressures that we place on one another during this season lead to depression, hurt, anger, and resentment. We have created so many romantic ideals for this season and have passed on these ideals to our children and grandchildren in such a way that if one cannot be “home” for Christmas, then Christmas is ruined. Did we ever stop and think that Mary and Joseph were quite far away from “home” for the First Christmas? We have created familial pressures around these holidays that cause us to feel guilty for not spending “enough” on gifts or not being the perfect host or hostess.
This year, many of us may be faced with the uncertainty of what the holidays are going to look like with our present trials induced by a pandemic. We wonder how it can feel like Christmas when so many of us are unable to join family for this holiday. This raises the question in my mind, “What is it that Christmas is all about? Is it family or Jesus?” I for one am glad that I don’t have to choose between the two, but if you had to, which do you fear most? Not being with birth family at Christmas or not being able to worship Jesus with your church family? I am grateful that I can worship Jesus in my living room by myself or with family – but Who is the focus of Christmas?
Prophets are a lot like the Grinch; they both find themselves calling out the priorities of the people of God. So, I want to call out the very essence of why we have this season: The Incarnation of God into human flesh. The significance of Jesus stepping into the suffering of humanity is greater than our traditions or the beauty of a winter wonderland.
For twenty years now, I have been dressing up as a Christmas character to tell the story of the First Christmas. Our Christmas Eve Services have become a highlight for many of our neighbors as it touches on the nostalgic. This year we are trying to peal back the layers of traditionalism, romanticism, and even nostalgia. For some, it might not feel like a Christmas Eve Service if Kurt doesn’t dress up in a character. Every year I get text messages and phone calls asking who I am going to portray and there are some families that wager on their guesses. However, this year, we are going to do something a bit different. We hope that our Christmas Eve Services will draw people to worship Jesus as the Light of the world.
We will pass the Light of Jesus to one another through song, scripture, and symbolism. We will be singing Christmas carols that are focused on the Person of Jesus. We will read the Christmas story from scripture. We will hear why the incarnation is so important in the darkness of a pandemic. And, yes, we will pass the Light of Jesus to one another as we go out into the night, albeit differently this year. If you want to join from home, the service will be offered LIVE on VirtualHarvest @4:30. If you want to join from the stable, we will be broadcasting the audio of the service to the stable on the patio – but dress appropriately!
We hope that this year we can focus our attention on Jesus as this grinch of a pandemic is stripping away our traditions. We want Christmas to be a reminder that the Light stepped into the darkness and gave us the right to be called the children of God. We also want each believer to be reminded that we are the light of the world as we are filled with the very Spirit of Christ Himself.
Join us as we worship Jesus in the darkness of this COVID winter: 3:00, 4:30, or 6:00 @411; or 4:30 @VirtualHarvest.
