You remember Scrooge’s story, I’m sure. In one night, the old miser Scrooge is completely transformed by the visit of the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. When he realizes he didn’t die, he’s a transformed man. At first he didn’t know how much time has passed.

Running to the window, he opened it, and put out his head:

“What's to-day?'' cried Scrooge, calling downward to a boy in Sunday clothes, who perhaps had loitered to look about him.

“To-day?'' replied the boy. “Why, Christmas Day.''

“It's Christmas Day!'' said Scrooge to himself. “I haven't missed it.”

At the very end, Dickens wrote,

“Ever afterwards; and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, ‘God Bless Us, Every One!’”

Possible Preaching Angle: We know another story like The Christmas Carol, only with shepherds and angel visitors instead of ghosts. The transformed Scrooge glorified and praised Christmas. And over a 150 years later, we’re still following his lead. Unbelievers can’t find enough ways to glorify and praise Christmas. But as believers we take our cues, not from Scrooge, but from the shepherds who returned glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard .

Source: Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol (Bantam Classics, 1986)