Last week, in The Grinch Who Steals Christmas Hope, we saw that if our hope isn’t grounded in Jesus, unbelief and lack of faith can easily steal it from us! The “Grinch” who steals Christmas hope is nothing more than our unbelief!
In the Dr. Seuss story, the grinch who stole Christmas was very upset by the Christmas cheer he saw in the citizens of Whoville. He sought to upset their peace by stealing all of their holiday decor and gifts.
I think I understand how the people of Whoville must have felt. You see, a “grinch” tried hard to steal my Christmas peace this year…
It had been a busy lead-up to the festive season. I had been decorating and baking and wrapping for weeks, and the final frenzy was with the purpose of cleaning the house for guests. Our younger son and daughter-in-law from western Canada were arriving, followed by our older son and his wife. Our little house would be completely full, and the single shower would be overcharged. And to top it all off, I would lose my bedroom.
With my husband’s dementia and his related sleep difficulties, I had taken to sleeping in one of the guest rooms. What would happen when I transferred back to his bedroom? My mind quickly reverted back to the weeks of sleepless nights before I moved to the guest room. Would I spend the entire time my kids were here without sleep?
And then there was the food. I have significant dietary considerations. My daughter-in-law from western Canada also deals with significant dietary considerations – That are polar opposite to my own! Besides, my husband and I are vegetarian, but all the kids eat meat; and my other daughter-in-law doesn’t tolerate things that were overly sweet. What if my baking was too sweet? What if I accidentally used something that would set off digestive problems? What if they didn’t like vegetarian meals? What if …. ?
But there were actually bigger problems to deal with. My husband needs a strict routine. Too much excitement would cause his dementia-related psychosis to show its ugly head. I wanted this Christmas to be perfect. What if my husband blew his top? What if he became psychotic? What if …. ?
A “grinch” was trying to steal my Christmas peace!
I suspect many of you can relate. The Christmas season, for so many people, is often void of peace. The “grinch” of worry and fear loves to steal our Christmas peace!
But wait. Didn’t Jesus come to bring peace to the world? Wasn’t this even … prophesied? “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us … And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 NASB).
Didn’t Jesus even say He was leaving His peace … with us? “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” (John 14:27 NASB).
Didn’t Jesus tell us to … rest … in Him? “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O LORD, make me to dwell in safety.” (Psalms 4:8 NASB).
Why is it, then, that the “grinch” of worry and fear can so easily steal our Christmas peace?
There is only one reason: Because we do not follow Jesus’ advice in Matthew 11:24: “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28 NASB). We refuse to “come” to Jesus; we hold on to our problems instead of surrendering them; and in so doing, we actually allow the “grinch” of worry and doubt to steal our peace!
In the end, the people of Whoville had their Christmas. The grinch who stole Christmas repented and returned Christmas to the citizens of Whoville. In much the same way, the “grinch” of worry and fear can also be made to return our Christmas peace. You see, I recognized that I was letting all the worry of the “what ifs” steal my Christmas peace; and each time a thought of panic would cross my mind, I renounced it in the name of Jesus. I surrendered the potential problem to Him and thanked Him for taking care of it. As a result, the “grinch” of worry and fear actually was unable to steal my Christmas peace. We had a beautiful Christmas, and not a single one of the “What Ifs” came to be! That’s what happens when we don’t let that old “grinch” of worry dominate our thinking! We prevent him for his theft!
But perhaps another reason, one that is even simpler, yet even more potent: We must remember that Jesus is the source of our peace. Not order in the home, not adequate bedrooms or bathrooms, not good mental and cognitive health. Jesus! And when we look to Him as our source of peace, the “grinch” who tries to steal our Christmas Peace has no choice but to … leave!
What about it? Let’s not let the “grinch” of worry and fear steal our Christmas peace this year! Instead, let’s focus on the Prince of Peace, the Christ Child we celebrate, looking to Him and Him alone as our source of peace! For His peace cannot be stolen!
But my Christmas hope and peace weren’t the only things in jeopardy that year… Join us next week for the conclusion of “The ‘Grinch’ Who Stole Christmas…”
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Author, Moderator, Acting Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
