My wife and I watched the movie "Elf" the other day. It has become quite the Christmas classic over the years, and yet, I haven't seen it in some time. Since my wife has wanted to watch it for most of the week, there we sat in Siem Reap, Cambodia in 88 degree weather watching the christmas movie. No, it does not feel like Christmas here.
It is funny, silly, sometimes bizarre, and yet the message is simplistic and cute in a way! Let me sum it up in my own words: A grown man, raised by elves since he was an infant in the North Pole, realizes one day he is a human and not an elf, and his whole world is turned upside down. Being compelled to travel to New York City to be reunited to his natural father, he travels on foot across more or less of a fairy land till he reaches the Lincoln tunnel. And that is just the beginning of his journey to reconciliation with himself and his natural family.
The Important Part:
What struck me early on was how childish he was! Not childlike, but childish. Being raised by elves in the North Pole, eating the three main food groups (sorry, you'll have to watch the movie), and building toys with stuffed animals that are actually alive for pets, would be like every child's paradise! And for Buddy, it definitely is! He is a child in a grown man's body - who also happens to literally walk into a normal job, go on a very abnormal, child-like (ish?) date and fall in love, get drunk in a mail room, get hurt by his father, and save Christmas all in about 72 hours (or so it seems).
And yet, I was choked up at one point! Buddy, literally, believes in everyone he meets, loves unconditionally no matter how hurt, and has faith in Santa (who he has seen) and is able to impart that same child-like faith in grown people he meets. It seems they cannot help but be impacted by his generosity, his compassion, his silliness, his naïvety or simplicity on many things!
Isn't that what captures us and delights us the most?
I couldn't help see a parallel with child-like faith he had in Santa and childlike faith in Jesus. It isn't about blindly believing in something without any reason at all! It is about a level of certainty through experience that leaves you impacted and convinced in your heart, soul, and mind. Faith may be blind in that you have not actually seen the object of your belief, but there is definitely a level of certitude that accompanies it. And faith is never without experience.
What kind of impact does this have on people around us? Buddy was not trying to convince everyone he met that Santa was real, he was simply living in that reality and it affected everything he said and did. I was impacted by an example of a childish man who believed in Santa, and the same often is said of those who believe in Jesus "Foolishness in the eyes of the 'wisdom' of the world" (1 Corinthians 2:20-21).
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