Who hasn’t seen this classic Christmas Story about the Grinch and all its editions?
While The Grinch gets his own answer to his question, the question, “Where does Christmas come from?” still begs us to pause, reflect, and answer for ourselves.
Where does Christmas come from?
Christmas comes from a story, not a store.
A Christmas Story by Charles Dickens features another stingy Christmas character Ebenezer Scrooge. Scrooge is faced with a journey through his hardening heart from Christmas Past to Christmas Present to the fruit of his closing heart portrayed by Christmas Future.
Perhaps like Scrooge, we are mourning the joy of our Christmas Pasts especially in light of a present dingy Covid Christmas. May we never close our hearts to disappointments, decline, or a dying world. While I enjoy every Christmas book and story I come across; it is the origin of all Christmas stories found from Genesis to Revelation that gives me enduring hope.
This Christmas no matter whether you are missing someone or whether you find it hard to spark the same joy of Christmas past. I pray that like Mary we can say:
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Lk. 1:46-47).
This story is real, relevant, active today and for all eternity. God is with us. Immanuel.