Every year, classics like The Grinch, Elf, and Home Alone make their rounds in homes decorated with tinsel and Christmas cheer.
And while nostalgia might be the primary reason we have these films on repeat, many of us don’t often take the time to examine how these story lines might be shaping us.
Let’s take Home Alone as an example.
Beyond the laughs, gags, and slapstick comedy, have you ever considered the underlying narrative that this movie is trying to communicate?
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not about to boycott Christmas movies—they are some of my favorite films. But there’s a big difference between watching them with a discerning eye and passively letting them shape our minds and hearts.
Underneath it all, Home Alone is celebrating and shining the spotlight on the age old lie of self-sufficiency.
Just consider the fact that Kevin McAllister decides to take on the two cat burglars himself. He doesn’t call for help. Instead, he takes matters into his own hands and outsmarts the burglars. Remember how he put a life size cutout of Michael Jordan on a train? And a mannequin on the record player? Genius.
And even later on when the cat burglars realize that Kevin is all by himself, Kevin still decides that he’s the king of his castle and the master of his own destiny.
If you’re interested in digging deeper, you can watch the sermon that I preached on this movie here to see how the parable of the rich man is a fascinating response to this age old lie of self-sufficiency.
But here’s the thought regarding self-sufficiency that I want to leave you with: Isolation is the end result of disconnection.
I love how King Solomon puts it, “One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound wisdom” (Prov. 18:1).
The more disconnected and isolated we become, the more we’ll turn inward and grow obsessed with ourselves.
I wonder if this is what happened with Kevin McAllister in Home Alone? He became so disconnected and isolated from others in his family, that all he could think about was himself—and how life would be better if everyone just disappeared.
Everyone in this family hates me. I don’t want a new family. I don’t want any family. Families suck. I don’t want to see you again for the rest of my whole life. And I don’t want to see anyone else either.
Let’s stop believing the lie of self-sufficiency because isolation is the end result of disconnection. Or to put it another way, the end result of self-obsession is isolation. So the more disconnected and isolated we become, the more we’ll turn inward and grow obsessed with ourselves.
In Chapter 3 of my newest book, You Are What You Do: And Six Other Lies about Work, Life, and Love, I elaborate on this idea further when breaking down the lie, “You are who you know.” Here’s an excerpt:
The more disconnected and isolated you become, the more you’ll turn inward and grow obsessed with yourself. Eventually, my current needs, my future needs, and my contingent what-if needs, will be all that you can think of. Even when you’re “helping” others, it will always be in view of what you can get out of it, or for that time when they can pay you back. And instead of recognizing and being grateful for the role that others have played in your life, you will reframe and reinterpret reality through the lens of me, myself, and I.
This is how it happens. After getting a promotion, you begin thinking to yourself, I got this because I deserved it, rather than recognizing the role your boss and teammates played. Or after receiving an admissions letter, you begin saying to yourself, Wow, all those years of hard work paid off, instead of being grateful for the sacrifices that your parents made, and the role that your teachers and mentors had in your education.
It’s a vicious cycle.
The more you turn inward and reinterpret the past through this self-centered obsessive way, the more disconnected you’ll become. And the more you disconnect from others, the more you’ll see life through the lens of giving and taking. Your relationships with others will turn into meaningless consumeristic transactions. And instead of viewing life with an abundance mind-set, you’ll begin seeing everything through the lens of scarcity. Instead of living a life of generosity, you’ll scrape by with greed. And on and on it goes.
Friends, stop letting this lie of self-sufficiency seep into your heart and mind. Because when we believe the lie that we are the king of our castle, the master of our own destiny, and in full control of all things, we’ll get the consequence we deserve: we’ll end up alone—home alone.
If you would like to dig deeper…
…and examine the seven lies that so many of us have come to believe about work, life, and love, be sure to pick up a copy of my newest book, You Are What You Do: And Six Other Lies about Work, Life, and Love.