Advent is filled with Christmas traditions, holiday parties, decorations and Christmas movies. This year, in particular, there is an added layer of tension that makes these holiday experiences even harder. I hear people talk about how careful they are not to mention politics or the news while they are with family and friends, not because the topics aren’t important but because these people are so important in their lives. We want to remain close friends, and not see the differences of opinion first. And in the midst of all the running and hot button issues, we all try and re-center ourselves on Jesus and the gift of His birth.
Who knew that a Filipino telecom ad would speak so well into this moment. If you have not seen the Globe Telecom ad for the new Star Wars movie The Rise of Skywalker, you need too.
The ad begins with two kids collecting various items for a building project. You see them going door to door and using found objects for their building project. It is hard to tell what scooters, tape, balloons, many borrowed cell phones and flashlights would create but you definitely need to see it because it reminds us what Christmas is really all about.
At the end of the ad you see that the children have made a multi-sensory spaceship and as the little girl sits down in the spaceship the two kids who built the spaceship jump, blow up balloons, make things pop, spray water and a variety of other things to help the little girl in the spaceship experience what was happening as Luke takes off in the starship. Sorry to spoil the ending but at the end you find out that the girl is deaf and the two children helped her experience Star Wars for the first time.
As I reflect about the ad, with tears rolling down my face I can’t help thinking about how that first Christmas was a lot like that. Of course there was no spaceships to build, but there was a newly married couple who started their marriage out with a lot of unplanned challenges. An innkeeper whose inn was overflowing, wise men who probably would have preferred a warm bed to many nights out in the desert, and shepherds who left their jobs unmanned to see a baby in a barn.
In a beautiful story of everyone gathered to see the newborn King, they spent most of their time taking care of each other. The innkeeper finding somewhere for a very pregnant Mary to rest. Mary and Joseph being grateful for a barn. The shepherds taking precious time to listen and show up. The wise men who brought three much needed gifts. And a newly married couple trusting God and each other enough through these tense first few months of marriage.
I wonder if that is what this December should be all about. If we need to reframe all those wonderful things we do during this season into really helping each other. It doesn’t mean not doing our favorites but it does mean doing them a little differently. Sometimes that means we have to get others to help. Maybe we are asked to really listen to another even if it is hard. Other times it is all about showing up. This Advent, take a moment to really help someone experience what Jesus’ birth is all about—God’s love for you and each other.
And if you haven’t seen the ad, please watch below. Merry Christmas.
