I owe you an apology. Well, if you are over the age of 35, then I owe you an apology. Otherwise, you weren’t around to experience the negative impact of the blatant blunder of which I am about to confess. Think back to Christmas day 1988. I am sure you remember it vividly. That was the worst Christmas ever experienced on a global scale. Surely you remember it. You may not remember it as clearly as I do because while you’re Christmas was ruined, I was the one who ruined it.
In order to help you understand what happened we have to rewind to Christmas 1987. I was four. My eyes popped open, and I launched excitedly out of my bed. Ignoring the clock, I ran down the hall to wake my parents. They begrudgingly arose from their slumber and accompanied me and my sister to the living room. We began opening our gifts when my parents realized that it was four o’clock in the morning. I doubt that I need to tell you this part but, they were not happy. However, Christmas went on according to plan with little to no cause for concern.
Back to ‘89. Here’s the scene: It’s Christmas Eve. I’m probably wearing footie pajamas. My parents are putting my sister and me to bed. In that process, they said these. Exact. Words. “Brandon, do not wake us up in the morning. Good night.” I struggled to get to sleep that night but was finally able to drift off into slumber after what seemed like hours later. Then, what seemed like seconds later, it was the morning. My eyes popped open and I sat up like a rocket launching toward outer space. I knew it was early, way too early. I knew it would be hours before my parents woke up of natural causes. Heeding their warning I left my room, made my way down the hall to the living room, and turned on the lights. It was a goldmine. There were presents everywhere. Santa had definitely come, and it looked like he brought backup. Being the kind, sweet, loving, and respectful son that I was, I decided to grant my parents their Christmas wish. I did not wake them up. Instead, I very quietly and with the expert precision that most surgeons dream of opened my gifts, and began playing with them.
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I had so much fun. I played uninterrupted for hours. Finally, the sun came up and gently awoke the rest of my family. My parents wandered down the hall looking extremely refreshed and well-rested. I looked up and said with all the Christmas cheer I could muster, “Merry Christmas!” That is when their well-rested faces turned from joy to confusion and from confusion to anger. They were furious! I don’t remember all of the words that were said but I do remember being told emphatically that I had ruined Christmas for everyone. Oddly, it seemed that the amount of trouble I was in was actually making my sister’s Christmas experience slightly better. But everyone else’s Christmas, those were ruined.
So, to you dear reader, I must apologize as that year must have been rough for you as well. From the bottom of my heart, I am sorry.
Here is what almost forty-year-old Brandon knows that five-year-old Brandon did not. I didn’t ruin Christmas. Not for you, not for me, and not for my parents. Yes, I robbed them of the joy of seeing their firstborn open his deluxe edition Batman Batcave playset. But I like to think I also taught them a valuable lesson. That lesson: Be careful with your words. I mean, I followed the directions to the letter, and I was five. When was the last time a five-year-old absolutely nailed it when faced with ambiguity? The answer is never. They never get it right. That’s why the saying “Explain it to me like I’m five,” is a saying.
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Whether it’s Christmas or just a normal Tuesday, our words matter, and they all have weight. This story is funny now because eventually, as a family, we were all able to laugh about it. But sometimes our words don’t result in a hilarious story that I will continue to tell regularly for the rest of my life. Sometimes, they result in hurt and broken relationships. This is why Scripture warns us regularly about the power of the tongue. One of the strongest of these warnings comes from the book of James.
When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue, we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
Our words have the power of life and death. Choose to use them to speak life into others, to encourage them toward their purpose, and to point them toward the love of Jesus. And never tell a five-year-old he ruined Christmas. He’ll probably still be talking about it in 35 years. *
*I am a full-grown adult now with my own children and I still can’t sleep on Christmas Eve.
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