By Dennis Pollock
I want to share a few thoughts about the Christmas movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and then use the Bible to relate this concept to a Christian perspective. Nearly all Americans will be familiar with this movie, and many will have watched it numerous times, usually in the Christmas season.
The movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” stars Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, but it is primarily about the character that Jimmy Stewart plays, a frustrated man named George Bailey. When George was young, he had huge dreams for his future. He dreamed of being rich and famous, and hoped to travel the world as a builder, creating some of the world’s most famous structures. But nothing seemed to go his way. He surrendered his hopes of attending college and gave the college funds meant for him to his younger brother. Just after being married, he forsook his planned honeymoon to rescue a small, failing “building and loan.” He never became wealthy, never became famous, never became any kind of builder, and was forced by circumstances to spend his days in his little town of Bedford Falls. In short, all the big dreams of his youth crumbled and dissolved.
Things came to a head when his uncle and partner in the small bank he managed, lost $8,000 of the bank’s money, and federal authorities had a warrant out for his arrest. This was just too much for the struggling bank manager, and in a fit of anger, frustration, and deep depression, he made his way to a bridge, planning to commit suicide by jumping into the river. As the movie continues, his wife, Mary, began praying for him and enlisted practically the entire town to join her, who all loved him and appreciated his kindness. An angel appeared and decided to show him what his community would be like if he had never been born. George Bailey is transported to an alternate world in which he did not exist. His wife was a lonely spinster, his children were never born, and his brother, Harry, never grew to adulthood to become a World War II war hero. Since George had saved him from drowning when he was eight, Harry was not around to save many others in the war, and they all died.
And the town in which he lived, Bedford Falls, became a raunchy, mean, ugly town, without kindly George being there as a steadying influence on his friends and neighbors. After this glimpse of what the world would look like without him, George Bailey realized that his life, even without all his youthful ambitions being fulfilled, was incredibly meaningful and blessed. And at the end of the movie, his friends started donating money to George to cover the $8,000 loss at the bank, and when it was counted, he had far more than he needed. While he was receiving his revelation of how badly his friends, family, and community needed him, his assigned angel tells him, “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around, it leaves an awful hole, doesn’t it? You really have had a wonderful life!”
Why So Popular?
It’s a great movie, well written, beautifully acted, and it was blessed to have the great director, Frank Capra. But I believe there is something beyond all this that makes it so massively popular. Most of us can relate to dreams and goals we had in our youth that never came to pass, or at least, not in the way we envisioned. Most of us can identify with George Bailey.
Our world incessantly urges us to follow our dreams. We hear this so often, we assume it surely must be the first law of the universe, and we believe that anyone who never achieves the dreams of his youth is the ultimate loser; stamp them on the forehead with a capital L.
But the truth is, like George Bailey, most people in the world will never achieve their youthful dreams. And most of these dreams were so unrealistic and over the top that it was only our naïve immaturity that caused us to dream them in the first place. Sure, some people become world-class athletes and celebrities, and make more money than they can spend, but for every one of these, there are thousands of men and women who live ordinary lives, work at ordinary jobs, and will never make it into the ranks of the rich and famous. They get married, have children, struggle to pay their bills, fall asleep watching TV at night, and never in their entire lives has anyone asked them for their autograph.
Most people’s dreams revolve around two basic things: they want to be rich, and they want to be famous. They see these as synonymous with success, as indicators that they are the true winners in life. But Christians do not see things that way, or at least they shouldn’t. Followers of Christ have a far superior ambition: we want to please our Heavenly Father. The apostle Paul writes: “Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. (2 Corinthians 5:9-10). Whether we ever become millionaires or we end up just living on a simple and meager paycheck, whether we are well known to millions or we are unknown beyond our family, friends, and a few co-workers, if we have pleased our Father in heaven and followed Jesus all our days, we will be content, yes more than content, we will be joyful.
The Bible seems to tell us NOT to seek fame or wealth. Concerning wealth, we are told: “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition…” (1 Timothy 6:9). And when it comes to making a big splash in the world, the Bible says: “Aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing.” (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12). If you surveyed recent college graduates, asking about their goals for their lives, how many, do you suppose, would say that they desire to lead a quiet life and mind their own business? Most people these days want to make as much noise as they can so that the world will notice them and hopefully admire them. We read of another Biblical life goal in 1 Timothy, where Paul tells Timothy: “Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness…” How many young people would state that their life’s major goal is to follow Jesus Christ and grow in righteousness, love, patience, and gentleness?” Not many, I would bet.
It’s About How You Live
Getting back to “It’s a Wonderful Life,” although George Bailey never became rich and famous, and never managed to escape the small, sleepy town of Bedford Falls, the kind and caring way he provided financial services to the people of his community, and the love and decency that permeated his life made a huge difference to his little piece of the world. And although the story is fictional, the principle of being faithful in the small things of life, well, there is nothing fictional at all about that.
Jesus tells us that if we abide in Him and allow His words to abide in us, we will bear much fruit. We will achieve greatness of a different sort than the world understands. There is something truly great about a life well-lived in Christ, something truly spectacular and wonderful about a man or woman who goes about their life living up to their responsibilities, showing respect and love to people of all kinds, working hard, and demonstrating honesty and integrity. And whether such a one ever becomes famous or makes millions of dollars doesn’t even matter.
For the unbeliever, there is only one responsibility: to know God and be reconciled to Him through His Son Jesus Christ. Receive Jesus by faith as your Lord and Savior. And once this has happened, then go about your life pleasing the Father, living quietly and responsibly, and being a blessing to others whenever you have the opportunity. Do this, and when your time comes to stand before Jesus for your life review, you will find that you really had a wonderful life.
