The Land of Misfit Humans

In the classic Christmas movie “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” we follow Rudolph, Hermie, and Yukon Cornelius into ‘the land of misfit toys.’ It’s a place for forgotten, misshapen, and unloved (unlovable?) toys.

Everyone there carries a deep sadness over their “misfit-ness” even as they form relationships and some semblance of community. For some, their brokenness is obvious like the jack-in-the-box named Charlie. For others, the brokenness runs deeper, like the regular, by most appearances, ragdoll suffering from rejection and depression over being an unloved and forgotten toy.

Rudolph and his travel companions are themselves misfits of a different sort having left behind the idyllic and endlessly happy North Pole. It is a sad image of lost people finding lost people. At the same time, they are all acutely aware of the rejection and separation from others that they have experienced. That in itself can be a gift.

Back in real life, we need to realize that Christmas is about many of the same themes. We are the “misfits”, broken, misused, or forgotten. We too have faced rejection and separation, from one another and from God.

What is so beautiful about the real Christmas story is that God comes to those who recognize their brokenness. We live in a world of misfit people that has been visited by Jesus Christ.

To those who acknowledge their need for healing God brings healing.

To those who have faced rejection, Christ offers acceptance.

To those who have tasted the bitter gall of judgment for sin, Christ’s blood offers redemption.

The truth is that we are all “misfit toys”, some of us just don’t know it. Many people go through life striving to find or create their own perfect North Pole thinking that if they work hard enough or earn enough or are nice enough they will get there.

Christmas is a celebration of our misfit-ness and of Christ’s perfectness. Jesus comes to this world full of misfits to bring us into the fullness of his love. Our imperfections, our pains, our rejection and separation all started to be undone when Jesus came to that manger all those years ago.