Christmas and Elton John: When You're Just Not Feeling It

Friends, we are one week from Christmas Eve.

Ever find yourself just not feeling it? Not expecting anything special to happen - it's just another Christmas? I've been contemplating that lately - how do we experience the special character of Christmas, the holy character, when it's something we do every single year, we've got the traditions down, we know exactly where the lights go and which ornaments just go back in the box, we know what we're giving everyone (it's the same thing we gave last year), what we're having for dinner, and it's all the same?

I am definitely a person who recognizes the value of traditions, and I think having things all the same sometimes helps us get into the season. But sometimes it just becomes background noise. It's just another day.

One of my all-time favorite TV shows is The Vicar of Dibley, an irreverent and hilarious British sitcom about the priest of the tiny town of Dibley. It's the kind of show I can watch over and over because the characters are so wacky. And it's not just about the humor - the stories are real and lovely. It's available on Netflix, and seriously, I think the world would be a better place if everyone watched it. You should just stop reading here and go find it.

In case you decided to keep reading, here's what brought The Vicar of Dibley to mind for me today. In one of the episodes, the town is putting on a fair to raise money for charity. They want to make it a big deal, so Geraldine Granger (the vicar - vicar is another word for priest) suggests they find a celebrity to kick off the fair. That'll get the whole town out to celebrate. The only problem, of course, is that it's hard to get a celebrity to come to the tiny town of Dibley.

Elton John, aka Reg Dwight

But suddenly there's a stroke of luck! Alice, one of the wackier residents of Dibley, says the only celebrity she knows is her cousin, but they haven't been in touch for a long time. When she says his name is Reg Dwight, Geraldine frantically starts flipping through a magazine, until she finds the page that says "Elton John, alias Reg Dwight" (Elton John was born Reginald Dwight). A stunned Alice, not quite understanding the situation, says, "He turned into Elton John?!" Geraldine explains the situation - Alice's cousin is, in fact, Elton John!

Alice invites him to the fair and he accepts. The whole town is thrilled. They make banners to welcome Elton John. They play Elton John music. They plan a costume contest where you dress up as someone from one of Elton John's songs. One of the residents goes around saying, "It seemed to him she lived her life like a candle in the wind." On the eve of his arrival, Geraldine and Alice are up all night getting ready.

Finally, the day of the fair comes. Elton is on his way!

You can probably guess what's going to happen here. There's a knock at the door - he's arrived! Geraldine opens the door to find....

This one is Alice's cousin Reg Dwight.
Not Elton John.

...Reg Dwight, a local guy who plays the blues. Not Elton John.

Of course, it's a great disappointment. They were expecting something amazing! Still, they end up having a great time at the fair, and in the nature of sitcoms, all ends happily, with many laughs along the way.

This episode came to my mind because I think that sometimes we look at Christmas in the opposite way. It's just Reg Dwight, that local guy who plays the blues. He's just Alice's cousin. Sure, the fair will be fun, but it's nothing special - the same thing we do every year.

But in reality, Elton John is coming!

Or, you know, someone even more important - Jesus! Let's make some banners and have a costume contest and sing all the songs and stay up all night because we're so excited! Let's run around town saying "Blessed are the peacemakers" and "Store up your treasure in heaven" and "You are my friends" and "Love one another!"

I know it's corny. I know we've all done Christmas before, and it didn't change the world, and it didn't make that big of a difference in our lives, and yeah, we know Jesus is coming, but so what? It's nothing special.

And the truth is that in a way, it is nothing special. Just another day. Just another Christmas.

But that's part of the wonder of it - because every day is special. Every day is Christmas. Every day Jesus comes. It's okay to forget a lot of the time, and it's okay if you don't feel it right now. But let's ask God to help us feel it. To help us remember that Jesus is really, really coming.

If you need some help remembering, here are some things you might try:

• Take five minutes and really just breathe, in God's presence.
• Sing "Silent Night" softly and slowly and let your imagination go to that night.
• Come be a part of the Spontaneous Christmas Pageant this Sunday at Battle Ground UMC. This is exactly what we'll be doing. Or if you don't live around here - go to church. Sing the carols and hear the words and go in the spirit of God.
• Go outside at night and look at the sky and imagine being a shepherd.
• Watch one of these videos (but pray first - don't just click the links, but invite God to speak to you through these videos):
• Kids being super awesome and reenacting the story
• Love Came Down at Christmas beautiful music video
• A penguin who's really getting into the spirit of the season (thanks Jenifer Savage)
• Put a stamp on your hand, or wear a different piece of jewelry, or tie a string around your wrist, and every time you notice it, take a deep breath and pause for a moment to recognize God's presence.

Merry Christmas, my friends!


P.S. If you ever watch The Vicar of Dibley, make sure you watch through the credits. The best part comes at the end. Happy watching, and Merry Christmas!