Is Christmas a Little Less Than You Expected?
Have your lights gone out?
Everything good comes from God. Every perfect gift is from him. These good gifts come down from the Father who made all the lights in the sky. But God never changes like the shadows from those lights. He is always the same. God decided to give us life through the true message he sent to us. He wanted us to be the most important of all that he created. (James 1:17–18, NASB)
“Two hundred fifty strands of lights, one hundred individual bulbs per strand, for a grand total of 25,000 imported Italian twinkle lights,” Clark Griswold proudly proclaims in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
Eyes wide with expectation, he stands, hand paused, and a drum roll from the family for the great plug-in. Clark’s excitement soon vanishes when there are no lights! None at all! The plug-in resulted in total disappointment.
I love when Clark’s mother says something to this effect, “Oh Clark, I can just see it in my mind, and it’s beautiful.” That sounds like something I would say. She was trying to be positive and soothe her son’s deflated ego.
The movie is funny because it is relatable. We may not go to the lengths of Clark, but we can build up certain expectations, especially at Christmas. Our dreams are dashed when Christmas tends to be somewhat sad. We miss a loved one who is gone, our presents are wrapped imperfectly, our cookies are burned, and we didn’t receive a phone call from a special loved one. We build up these grandiose ideas in our minds, only to be disenfranchised by the outcome.
Our lights have faded, and we are left feeling dark and lonely. We think, “What happened to the jolly, holly Christmas?”
When Clark plugged in the extension cord, there was nothing because there was no source of electricity. Once his wife turned on the switch — voila — there were lights!
Is our Christmas a little less than we had expected? The problem may be that we are unplugged from the source that gives light. We need to worry less about having our home and meal perfect and sending out all the Christmas cards. Instead, we need to plug into a time of meditation, prayer, scripture, worship, soft Christian music, and a reminder of what Christmas is all about.
The Word of God came to us in flesh and blood. He was born of the virgin Mary in a cow stall. His gift was grace-filled redemption and forgiveness of sin. His love shines bright for all who receive Him. In this simple truth, we should live, a truth that gives light. It’s God’s perfect gift for us.
When we plug into God, through the conductor of light, Jesus Christ, we will be an illumination of Him. The hug we give, the pat on the back, the gifts to those less fortunate, and the words of comfort we extend can go a long way in illuminating the darkness of this world.
There will be no need for 25,000 imported Italian twinkle lights because the light of the world will shine through you for all the world to see.
