
A Heart That Grows Three Sizes
Scene: Luke 1:8-20, 57-64
Biblical Character: Zechariah
Christmas Movie: How the Grinch Stole Christmas
“Have you ever loved somebody…the way that Jesus loves you?”1 As I listened to the words to this song, I reminisced about the first time I held my son Kevin. I never planned on having children; it just wasn’t in my plans. Throughout my pregnancy I asked God, “How on earth did You choose me to be somebody’s mother?” I’m selfish! Yes, I love kids, and what I love most about kids is the fact that I can give them back to their parents. Then it happened. The nurse placed that tiny little being in my arms, and I felt my heart grow. It grew so big that I thought it would pop out my chest. I looked at my sweet baby boy and said, “I love you so much it hurts.” God knew what I didn’t know: that I could love unselfishly.
In How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Grinch thought he could stop Christmas from coming if he stole all the material things associated with the holiday. Yet, what he didn’t realize was that the Whos didn’t need any of those things to celebrate Christmas because Christmas was in their hearts. When he finally realized that Christmas is so much more than things, his tiny heart grew three sizes bigger that day.
Zechariah didn’t believe the angel Gabriel when he told him that he and his wife Elizabeth would have a son in their old age. He was unable to speak until the child was born. I could only imagine how Zechariah’s heart grew when baby John was born. During this Christmas season, let’s allow God’s love to fill our hearts to maximum capacity.
Darlene Dickson
1 Real Love by Kirk Franklin, from Kirk Franklin and the Family album
More About Scenes of the Season
The Advent season is upon us, a time when we prepare our hearts for the coming of the Christ child at Christmas. This special season is full of familiar stories – from the family anecdotes that get told over and over again, to the holiday movie classics we watch year after year, to the well-known stories of scripture repeated each Advent. The four main characters in the Advent story, Mary, Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth, each had their own unique way of preparing for the first Christmas. This Advent, we will focus on the scenes in scripture that tell their story, revealing to us how we, too, are invited into the narrative and become a part of the Christmas scene. Invite a friend to join us for worship as we experience the joy and excitement that Christ brings to us through the Scenes of the Season.