Five years ago, Will Ferrell starred in a holiday
movie that was a hit with youth and families alike. I don’t know how
many movies have been made about Santa Claus and his elves, but I’m
almost positive "Elf" was the goofiest one ever. Maybe that’s
why everyone loved it so much- it seems every movie these days that
has Will Ferrell tripping over himself and saying one silly line after
another is going to draw crowds- "Old School,"
"Anchorman," "Semi-Pro," the list goes on and on.
Something, however, made this Will Ferrell movie feel a little bit
different to me. It took place during the Christmas season, but more
than that, it was very much about what today we call the
"Christmas spirit." If you remember, Buddy the elf (Ferrell)
leaves the North Pole to find his real father, who he discovers is a
mean business tycoon, basically a "scrooge." The movie
continues until slowly, because of Buddy’s love and sincerity, his
father quits his job to find something more honest, as his heart was
changed from Buddy’s love and this "Christmas spirit."
There have been many holiday movies made over the
years, and often they are about someone having a change of heart at
the end of the movie, usually because of love for their family and the
Christmas spirit. George Bailey said to his guardian angel "Take
me back to my wife and kids, Clarence, I want to live again…"
in "It’s a Wonderful Life" the Grinch’s heart "grew
three times that day…" and even the old lady at the end of
"Home Alone" finally speaks with her son she hadn’t talked
to in years. As American audiences, we love these movies, and they
always seem to find their way into our hearts and our families’
homes every year. So what is it about the "Christmas spirit"
that we love so much?
Well, for starters, I would say that giving, love, and
forgiveness aren’t just the "Christmas spirit," but
the "Christian spirit." And this spirit shouldn’t
be something we commit ourselves to for December 1st -25th
every year, it should be a year-long devotion. Have you ever received
a great, wonderful gift for Christmas? It’s an incredibly wonderful
feeling, right? I would also ask, though- have you ever given a loved
one the perfect gift, the gift of their heart’s desire, and seen
their face light up? If you have, you know that this feeling is even
better. Now, imagine carrying this same spirit the next eleven months,
giving love and forgiveness the rest of the year. This is what Jesus
Christ came to teach us about. This is why He, the Master and Creator
and King of all, was born on earth as a little baby in a small cave of
animals- because God wanted to show us that He came "not to be
served, but to serve." (Mark 10:45)
One last thing- I’m pretty sure that most of us have
Christmas trees in our homes, and that every year we decorate them and
love seeing them give us some of the beauty of the season. There is,
however, another kind of tree in our homes, too- yourselves. Psalm 128
says that the one who loves God will have children like young trees
around his table (Psalm 128:3). What this says is that each one of our
parents love us and are very, very proud of us. So this Christmas
season, let’s try to remember this, even if we’ve reached the age
where our parents aren’t "cool" anymore. Tell your dad you
appreciate what he does. Tell your mom you love her. Just like Buddy
the elf travelled half the world to find his dad, and God came down to
earth to find each of us, let’s remember the Christmas spirit- the
Christian spirit- and do our best to love our families and all those
around us this month and every month. God always loves us, so let’s
love one another. Merry Christmas.
