To be merry-hearted is to be bravely and innocently cheerful. While neither forceful or violent, the merry-hearted are powerful agents of good. Their presence in every story means hope and overcoming the darkness.
Think of every character you’ve truly loved in stories who have modeled this during dark hours. Brave and cheerful, willing to celebrate and cultivate acts of delight despite shadows, hardships, and threats. Tom Bombadil. Sam. In Ratty’s cheerful countenance with Mole making the best of what they find in Mole’s neglected hole. You see it in Hobbit homes and in the beloved Inn in Elizabeth Goudge’s Herb of Grace (Pilgrims’s Inn). You see it in The Green Ember and in the Wingfeather Saga. You see it in Luna Lovegood. You hear it in the bright voice of Father Christmas.
You see it in Narnia everywhere, but perhaps nowhere quite so poignant as the scene in the chapter titled “Aslan is Near” of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. A marvelous little Christmas breakfast tea is taking place among a small party of squirrels, an old fox, a dwarf, and two satyrs. This marvel is the gift of Father Christmas – a merry-making gift of good tidings. The elder of this happy company, the Fox, is about to offer a glad toast, standing with glass in hand ready to cheer that Spring is come and with it the certainty that Aslan is on the move! The grip of the White Witch is breaking. Christmas has come again to Narnia. Christmas after 100 years of winter! Then, just as their joy peaks, the sledge of the White Witch comes upon the festive gathering and she demands an account of what they are doing. Not only is she terrifying with the power to kill them, she accuses them of gluttony, waste and self-indulgence. She interrogates them about where such lovely provender has come from. The Fox – being the eldest and bravest – tries to deflect the danger but also he tells the truth. Father Christmas gave them these gifts. Enraged with the truth that her reign is coming to an end and that she is losing control of Narnia, The White Witch calls him a liar, but a young squirrel seals their fates, squealing “He has – he has – he has!” And in that moment she raises her wand and turns them all to stone statues. This moment is also a turning point for Edmund, who for the first time in the story feels sorry for someone besides himself.
Illustration by Pauline Baynes
Our situation is truly much like that. Yes, the enemy is still present and seems to have the upper hand so far, but everywhere we look – if we choose to look – there is evidence that Good prevails. Beauty is peeking out at us at every turn. Goodness is being practiced by multitudes quietly and faithfully. Truth shines out all the more beautiful and glittering in the deepening shadows of the world. I find in my heart, like Puddleglum in The Silver Chair, that I would rather be found standing ready to toast Aslan’s return and be turned to stone for it, than be cowering somewhere silent and afraid to live bravely at all.
We make merry for our self.
We make merry for others.
We make merry for the Lord.
Making merry is an act of defiance against the enemy that would have us each enslaved to the belief that hope is groundless. Making merry is an act of carrying out our charge to encourage and inspire, to kindle hope in those who need it. Making merry is not trivial, and done from a place of belief, it is indeed a profound and lingering act of standing on the truth which sets us free. Christ was born. God came to live with us. Not just huddle in the shadows with us, weep in our sorrows, grieve in our sins and, lament in our losses. He came to live with us in all the common good of daily earthly life. The daily, earthly life He invented and spoke into existence. He came to eat with us, build things with us, laugh with us, sing and make merry with us, dance with us, tell stories, enjoy art and music and pottery and calligraphy with us, design and plant gardens with us, solve problems with us, and even wink at us in the kitchen.
When we make merry, we rehearse in life what we assent in our hearts to be true. That the Lord has won the battle, that the enemy has already truly lost, and that Good in fact prevails. When we choose to make merry even on the smallest scale, we declare that the Lord is King, and we give Him glory. We make merry in any true and good way, we light our own candle and we light it for another who can in turn light it for another. We adorn the dark by declaring that we are not afraid and that we are not beaten.
The featured image titled “Christmas Fox” is (c) Lancia E. Smith and used with her glad permission for The Cultivating Project.
Lancia E. Smith is an author, photographer, business owner, and publisher. She is the founder and publisher of Cultivating Oaks Press, LLC, and the Executive Director of The Cultivating Project, the fellowship who create content for Cultivating Magazine. She has been honoured to serve in executive management, church leadership, school boards, and Art & Faith organizations over 35 years.
Now empty nesters, Lancia & her husband Peter make their home in the Black Forest of Colorado, keeping company with 200 Ponderosa Pine trees, a herd of mule deer, an ever expanding library, and two beautiful black cats. Lancia loves land reclamation, website and print design, beautiful typography, road trips, being read aloud to by Peter, and cherishes the works of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and George MacDonald. She lives with daily wonder of the mercies of the Triune God and constant gratitude for the beloved company of Cultivators.
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Amen! What a good word this is, Lancia. This is just what I needed to hear.
Matthew, thank you. There is more for me to finish for this one but sometimes offering a very small piece of bread and fish must be enough. I am so grateful for you.
Thank you so much for this, I love this time of the year, but suddenly started feeling so blue starting a day ago. I realize now that it is the enemy trying to steal my joy. I need to focus so much more on Jesus.
Eurika, thank you for sharing this. I love this time of year too and yet it is always tinged for me with deep, deep sadness. Some that of course is bio-chemical because of the diminished light with the season, some of it is my own history. Focusing on Jesus is the anchor point because He is the Light. I encourage you to focus on the victory in Christ that He has won and the way that He must rejoice in Life. As someone who has spent many years dealing with depression, one of the things He has taught me to do when the shadows come in is to name them. Actually identify the causes of sadness of blues as much as possible. Naming them does two things. One, it gives you a more skilled way of praying over those causes of sadness and giving those to our Saviour to deal with; and two, the enemy despises that act of naming. Naming is a powerful act because it was and remains elemental to our calling and purpose. Naming is the creative power given to us and when we do it, we step into our ordained role again with Jesus beside us. It is much easier to face a named and identified opponent than one hidden in shadows. I am keeping you in prayer. May the Lord of Light give you all manner of grace, encouragement, hope, and protection from the evil one, and may you see ways for making merry that are true for you with your whole heart. Many blessings to you!
I have already had multiple conversations about or sparked by this essay. What a robust vision of making merry. Thank you for the challenge. (Indeed, “He has, He has, He has” come!)
Rebecca, thank you indeed for your kind words! Let us, friend, make merry bravely all year long, for ourselves, our friends, the watching world, and especially for the heart of our good and soon returning King!