The Remembrance of Christmas Past: Hope from Heartbreak (Sunday, December 4th, 2016)

Bible Reference(s): Isaiah 9:1,6 / Luke 2:8-14

Sermon by Rev. Terri Thorn

Today, the second Sunday in our Advent series, Mr. Scrooge gets a visit from the Ghost of Christmas Past. Now I suppose, if one has to be visited by a ghost of some sort, the ghost of Christmas Past is probably the way to go. I mean if we are forced to look into the past, Christmas time seems to be safe enough. It usually consists of mostly fond memories..as long as we don't go too deep below the surface. Most of us are comfortable with some general reminiscing of our favorite stories, but that's about it. Otherwise, we tend to say that the past is the past and we don't want to spend too much time there.

I wonder if that's because too much time in the past, or too far down below the surface, and the stories become less Hallmark-ish. In fact they may even be painful to remember. Or perhaps we just prefer to leave things the way we remember them, whether or not it is the way the really were. To look any closer might upset the picture we've settled in our mind.

And let's be honest, we all have mental images of what we think the past was like...and usually no two people remember it the same. The things we remember and the way we remember them is always from our own very limited perspective and life experiences. More importantly...as Scrooge discovers in the ghostly visit...over a lifetime, the things we remember...or those we refuse to allow ourselves to remember...can have a significant impact on who we are and how we live in the here and now. Regardless of how recent or ancient they are, or how accurately we remember them, the memories we carry in our heart influences how we see ourselves, each other, and the world.

In Scrooge's case, it was the memories he repressed - the one's he refused to face - that had the greatest bearing on who he became -- a miserable, ruthless, lonely old. Yet, as I mentioned last week, Ebenezer Scrooge wasn't always a scrooge. He became "scrooge" if you will as a result of choices made at various crossroads in life...decisions which were mostly based on his limited perspective of how things really were.

The purpose of the visit of the Ghost of Christmas Past was to help Scrooge see this about himself. It was an opportunity to broaden his perspective and encourage him to realize that another version of his own story was possible. It was meant to be an experience of hope - even if just a glimpse. The Ghost of Christmas Past was there to cast light into Scrooge's story...to illuminate the painful past he had repressed...not to prove it false...not to make it better...but to release him from the grip it held over him and his life.

Truth be told, no one is ever eager to look at the ugly side of life. Rarely does one willingly CHOOSE to take a walk down the painful path or to explore the dark corners. Scrooge definitely did not want to face the pain of his childhood loneliness...or to re-experience the cold rejection of his parents that he felt when he was sent off to boarding school. He had no desire to pick the scab off the wound he suffered when he chose wealth over love and happiness.

Yet Christmas Past insisted that Scrooge allow himself to remember all of this and more. Why do you suppose that is? Why would is it necessary to subject ourselves to the things that break or harden our hearts. Some folks will say that it has therapeutic value. Facing our pain -- past or present --helps reframe how we respond to it. Addressing pain head-on moves us through it. It gives us hope to move forward and we often find ourselves in a new place of compassion and peace when we do.

Many people have said that the most painful experiences of life have also been times of greatest emotional and spiritual growth for them. Even though they would rather not experience pain and hurt, they also believe the challenging times made them realize just how strong they could be. This is particularly true for people of faith. Crisis...hitting rock bottom...feeling utterly helpless and alone...this is when we become more acutely aware of our need for God. It moves us to reach out for something greater than ourselves.

Another reason we must be willing to face the good, the bad and the ugly of our life is that we can only fully experience the joy of redemption if we are free of guilt and shame and resentment. If we avoid, hide or bury the past...it will continue to shape our future. However, if we view it through the light of Christ...through the light of mercy and grace...it loses its power over us and we gain a new, more loving and forgiving perspective about ourselves, about others, and about God.

Casting light into the dark corners of our life is how healing comes to us and makes us whole. In the language of our faith, we say that God's grace is upon us whether we know it or not. However, we will only experience God's grace...when we acknowledge we need it. In other words, forgiveness and salvation is always there for us...but we will only receive it when we have confessed our fears and failures...our sins and transgressions...when we have faced our deepest darkest pain.

It's really scary to consider looking into the darkness, but as soon as we do...the light is there for us...casting out the fear, softening the heart...preparing us to receive the grace of Christ and be transformed from the scrooge we sometimes are into the likeness of Christ that we are created to bear. Of course, the change doesn't happen immediately, but a glimpse of compassion usually does. It frees us to become gentler and kinder toward ourselves and others.

The best metaphor I've ever experienced for this was when our family visited Marengo Cave. The farther into the inner rooms of the cave we went, farther from the safety of the entrance, the more unsettled I felt. And when the guide extinguished all sources of light, it was literally terrifying. I could not even recognize my own hand in front of my face. The darkness overtook us, disoriented us, and made us fearful of every sound and movement around. I still remember how my heart raced, and even though I knew in my rational mind I was safe and sound with a tour guide and there would be another tour group coming along in a minute...during that darkness I felt completely alone and afraid. And then the guide struck a match and lit a single candle. The tiniest light, which grew brighter and brighter...until I realized my eyes were seeing more light even though it was still just a single candle...and my perspective, if you will...was adjusting and responding to the light.

To me that's what it is like when Christ's light enters into the darkness of hearts and the painful moments of our lives. The darkness is dispelled even though we are still in the cave, and while the pain remains, our experience of it becomes different. We take on a new perspective about it. One that is more hopeful and hope-filled. More trusting and unafraid.

In the plot of the Christmas Carol, the Ghost of Christmas Past came to Scrooge in order to illuminate the past as a way of instilling hope for a different future. His glowing light of hope helped nudge Scrooge to consider that the destructive path of the past, the one filled with pain and resentment...could still become different in the future. It provided a hope and a light...whether he understood it at the moment or not...for redemption..for reconciliation with others, for a new life with a different meaning.

And folks, isn't that what it means to be redeemed in Christ? To repent...to turn away from the all the isolated, walled-off, selfish, dark, scooge-like paths of our life in order to walk the new path of light and love...the way of mercy, compassion, and grace with each other?

Isn't that what it means for the people who walked in darkness to see a great light? Isn't that why God embodied himself in human flesh and dwelled among us? The great light that Isaiah mentions came to earth to illumine the darkness...and to free us from it. He came to walk with us in our pain and guide us in the difficulties. Jesus was born to give us hope so we can move toward the light of his love...to be transformed by his compassion...and to experience the joy of mercy and forgiveness...to know the peace of salvation...even when everything else around us feels very burdensome, heavy and dark.

Friends, these familiar words of Isaiah, given to the Israelites, offered the same thing that the Ghost of Christmas Past offered Scrooge. To a people whose past had been filled with darkness and whose lives were still quite miserable, this prophecy gave hope for a different, better future...a future filled with justice, mercy and peace. This is the same "hope for a different future" that the shepherds celebrated that night in the fields. It is the same hope that came to us as the baby born in Bethlehem. It is the light we seek every Advent season, and it is the light of hope the world so desperately needs now.

There was a glimpse and glimmer of the miracle of this hope in Scrooge as he visited his past. His own memories of pain moved him to consider how he could bring compassion to those in need and be a source of healing for the broken world. It was a small shift...but it was the first step toward a different future for him and for all those around him. As we continue on our Advent journey, even during this year which seems particularly painful for so many, may the presence of Christ's light and hope move us to compassion and mercy and love toward each other so we, too, can change the world around us. And, may the light of our lives burn brightly as the miracle of Christmas has begun in each of us. God bless us everyone.