A Light in the Darkness

"What does Christmas mean to you?" 

I have never cried during a movie. Each Christmas Eve, however, the final scene of It’s a Wonderful Life tugs at my tear ducts ever so slightly. Following Christmas Eve Mass, my family and I gather around the TV to watch the 1946 classic. While the movie itself never changes, it has changed how I view Christmas. Over the years some of the main themes and values of the movie have shaped what Christmas means to me.

If you have never watched the movie:

1. You should
2. Consider this your spoiler alert

The holiday season can be difficult. Everyone experiences suffering, and sometimes the season’s focus on material wealth, gift-giving, and family can create or exacerbate issues. Background music claiming, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year” can become unhelpful.

George Bailey, the protagonist of It’s a Wonderful Life, certainly has his share of holiday hardships. An innocent mistake by his uncle, aided by the wealthy, conniving Mr. Potter, leaves the Bailey Building and Loan short $8,000. Roughly equivalent to $100,000 in today’s money, George, as the head of the company, will be held responsible for the deficit and thrown in jail. Desperate for help, George crawls to Potter to ask for a loan, offering his $15,000 life insurance policy as collateral. Potter, unmoved, smugly remarks that Bailey was, “worth more dead than alive.”

Potter’s assertion and the overall situation leave George untethered and discouraged. Hours after seeking help from Potter, George finds himself atop a tall bridge, peering over the edge at the icy river below, contemplating jumping to his death.

At that moment, God sends Clarence, George’s guardian angel, to save him. Clarence, with God’s help, shows George what the world would have looked like had he never been born. Through that experience, George comes to realize that the missing funds do not define his life and his worth. The loving relationships that George has in his family and community are worth far more than $8,000.

It’s a Wonderful Life reveals to me a special meaning of Christmas – that in the darkness God always sends His light. Clarence is George’s light in the darkness, reflecting the saving love of Jesus that we celebrate each year. Jesus delights in stepping into our lives in our darkest moments. As Clarence shows, He does so in often unexpected, creative ways, unique to each of us and our needs. He shows us that His love for us defines who we are, not our perceived shortcomings. 

So, during this season, when perhaps we, like George Bailey, feel that we have fallen short, we can take courage. We can do so because Jesus’ birth shows us that darkness always gives way to the light of our Lord.

As the bells ring on Christmas morning, we know that our Savior has been born.

And just maybe, another angel has its wings.


Hi, my name is Chris McGahren, and I am a fourth-year from Charlottesville. In addition to watching It’s a Wonderful Life, my family always has quiche for dinner on Christmas Eve. The leftovers make for a great breakfast on Christmas morning too.