The Grinch

All around the world, nativity scenes at Christmastime incorporate the Holy Family, shepherds, and angels.  They typically also include the magi, who traveled from the east to worship the newborn king.  Traditionally, the twelve days of Christmas begin on December 25 and end on the January 6 feast of Epiphany—the wise men’s arrival.  Our gift giving reflects the presents of gold, frankincense, and myrrh that the magi gave to Jesus.  But mixed into the story of the wise men is also the story of Herod, and how he tried to stop Christmas from coming.  Dr. Seuss has a similar Herod character, called the Grinch.  How the Grinch Stole Christmas begins:

Every Who down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot
But the Grinch who lived just North of Whoville did not!

Then he growled, with his Grinch fingers nervously drumming,
I must find some way to keep Christmas from coming!

There are similarities and differences between Herod and The Grinch.  Both hated the people they looked down upon.  Both hated the very thing that gave the people joy.  Both, in their own way, tried to stop Christmas from coming.  But unlike the Grinch who merely tried to steal the Who’s Christmas presents, Herod, you know, stole the people’s joy by slaughtering a whole village’s babies.  Now that’s a big difference indeed.  Atrocities like this continue to happen today, and on an even grander scale.  Take, for example the tragic situation in Aleppo with thousands of innocent civilians trapped and besieged and murdered and starving.  Even as we have been celebrating the Savior’s birth, people have been dying from war and war’s affects like disease and malnutrition.  So with real tragedies like Herod’s massacre of innocents and the devastations of war, believe me when I say that I don’t want to make light of suffering as I talk about someone as silly as the Grinch.  But I believe the Grinch has four things to tell us about people who steal our joy—in grandiose and in day-to-day ways.

1. Grinches may have hearts that are too small. Some people just can’t help it—they may have been born with emotions that are low on the compassion-meter.  Or maybe kindness has been squeezed out of them due to pain they have experienced.

2. Grinches may be envious of what you have. Just as Herod was envious of the Christ Child’s position and jealous for this throne, the green-eyed monster makes joy-stealers out of many.  Whether they never were blessed with material possessions or whether they suffered loss at some point, some in your life may be difficult because you have something that they don’t.  Maybe you have an emotional strength or good relationships or deep spirituality that they envy.  Jealousy prompts many to steal other people’s joy because, If I can’t have it, then neither will you!

3. Grinches may be over-stimulated. Instead of just chalking them up to just being grumpy, maybe you could understand that some people literally can’t handle as much physical, auditory, or visual stimulation as others.  Maybe the Grinch had Asperger’s Syndrome or some other physiological reason to want to turn off the noise.  Maybe your Grinch isn’t grumpy at all—just over-stimulated.

4. Grinches may not understand the source of your joy.  Whether your joy is found in faith or in family or in roast-beast, the difficult people in your life just might not understand.  Herod couldn’t possibly comprehend the kind of Messiah that had been born.  He could only imagine a threat to his throne.  So maybe your joy-stealer just doesn’t get it.

What can you do about Grinches?  First, pray for them. Ask God to change their heart of stone to flesh, or to grow it three sizes.  Second, see them as real people instead of problems, and try to understand their motivations.  If you can put yourself in their position, you may figure out how to help them.  Third, don’t be afraid to be like Cindy-Lou Who, and confront the Grinch who is stealing your joy.  You may or may not be successful at changing minds or altering plans, but your conscience won’t be clear until you’ve tried to do something to stop the joy-stealers in their tracks.  Fourth, remember that it’s okay to disobey authority that is in the moral wrong.  Just as the magi went home by a different route and refused to comply with Herod’s request to identify the Messiah, you may need to say no to authority that asks something wrong from you.  Fifth, like Mary and Joseph, you may need to get away from your Herod, taking your joy with you to protect it from the despot’s grasp.  Yes, some people are such joy-stealers that they become dangerous. It’s okay to get rid of those who threaten your mental, emotional, and physical well-being.  Just as God led the Holy Family from a harmful situation, maybe God is preparing another place for you—a place of refuge and peace.  Not all Grinches grow bigger hearts and turn nice at the end of the story.  Sometimes you have to re-write your own ending.

As this New Year begins, maybe it’s time to invite your Grinch into your joy and song.  Or maybe it’s time to confront or disobey or flee.  Whatever the case, I pray that God will give you the wisdom to deal with the joy-stealers in your life, and that you’ll be able to guard that joy, because the joy of the Lord is your strength. (Nehemiah 8:10 NLT)

Please pray for the innocent civilians who are so severely affected by the war in Syria.

Learn how you can personally help to aid suffering by visiting the website below:

http://www.upworthy.com/7-real-things-you-can-do-right-now-about-the-catastrophe-in-aleppo?c=ufb1

© 2016 by Greg Smith

Reprinted with permission from revgregsmith.blogspot.com.