A Grinchy Christmas
Matthew 1:21
December 18th Devotional
On this day in 1966, CBS aired “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” for the first time. This 26-minute tv special was based off Dr. Seuss’ novel by the same name written in 1957. The show was famously voiced by the master of the horror genre himself, Boris Karloff (he was the narrator and the voice of the Grinch). The antagonist of the story is the Grinch. The Grinch is a grouchy, fuzzy creature who lives in the cold snowy mountain overlooking the city of Whoville. The Grinch’s heart is filled with hatred, probably because his heart was two times too small. His lone companion was his trusty brown dog named Max. The Grinch’s primary hatred was the town that rested in the valley, the town of Whoville. The people of Whoville were friendly and happy people. Their joy grew as the Christmas season approached. For fifty-three years the Grinch had to endure their songs, shopping, celebration, and noise. It drove him to madness. One day he concocted a devious plan, he was going to steal Christmas! He made a shabby Santa costume, outfitted poor Max as a reindeer, and drove a sleigh down from his mountain bluff to the happy valley below. The night hour had overtaken the down and everyone was nestled down for a long winter’s nap. That’s when he sprung into action. The Grinch entered each house stealing all the Christmas contents. His vile, garlic-filled soul stole presents, lights, trees, decorations, and even the food (I personally would like a taste of who Roast Beast myself). He left no crumb behind. He was going to make the people of Whoville pay for their jovial attitude. He went about his work unmolested until he had a brief encounter with Cindy Lou Who, but not even she could deter him from his monstrous plot. Having finished the job, he returned to his mountain retreat waiting to hear the tears and sorrows of the people below…but instead, his empty heart heard something quite unexpected. He heard the people singing. They were singing without lights, without trees, without presents! He was stunned! His mission had failed. But this fuzzy green villain pondered, “Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more.” His heart grew three times as he repented from his villainy and converted to become a lover of the Christmas season. He entered the down joyfully returning all that he had stolen!
Seuss’ inspiration for writing the short 33-line poem was to combat the commercialization of Christmas. He felt that Christmas had become something different and according to him, it made him feel Grinchy. He finished the book in a mere three weeks. He later said it was the easiest book he had ever written, except for the conclusion. The Grinch reminds us as Christians of an extremely important principle, to not lose the true meaning of Christmas. That’s pretty easily said and read, but it’s awfully difficult to practice. We live in a consumer-driven culture that demands we put our full attention on Christmas. No one is really trying to cancel Christmas because Christmas is good for business portfolios. Most businesses make 60% of their yearly profit in the weeks around Christmas. The problem isn’t getting rid of Christmas per se, it’s losing sight of what it means. In Matthew chapter one Joseph of Nazareth attempts to sleep. He had received some extremely disturbing news; his espoused wife Mary was pregnant, and the child wasn’t his. Joseph was a good man, he was willing to privately ‘divorce’ Mary so as not to shame her. That night he went to bed with a hurting, confused, and a broken heart. I imagine he struggled to sleep, but in the night hour, an angelic visitor came to him saying that Mary was pregnant with the Son of God. Then, in the midst of this message the angel said “she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).” The message of Christmas is about Jesus Christ. It’s not even so much about a manger, a baby, and swaddling clothes. The story revolves around that last phrase, save His people from their sins. Christ came to this world not just to be born, but to die. To be a perfect sacrifice to save our souls from sin. The most “Grinchy” thing we can do each Christmas is to try to celebrate the season absentee Christ.
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