There is a thick stretch of unruly shrubs, mixed with small and large trees that sprawls between the back of our property and our neighbors’ yard. The untamed growth is dense enough to provide a wall of privacy for us humans and abundant food and shelter for the deer and other wildlife who make their home there. That green wall is like visual white noise. Not remarkable enough to attract attention, and predictable enough to serve as a soothing backdrop.

Until a few weeks before Christmas this year, when I spotted a cluster of little white lights glowing on a small tree in the middle of our shared suburban jungle. The tree is nearly hidden in the woodsy area during the day, but when the sun sets and the sky darkens, its humble silhouette stands out like a landlocked beacon.

This single lighted tree nestled in the woods is a stunning contrast to the spectacular, street-facing holiday decorations you can see as you drive through our neighborhood.

I love the bright and colorful lights that define the holiday season and I admire the creative ingenuity behind the whimsical scenes people create on their lawns – even the giant inflatable cartoon characters and the re-purposed Halloween skeletons in Santa costumes!

But somehow, their technicolor impact pales in comparison to the catch-your-breath reaction I get every time I look out across our backyard and see those twinkling white lights on that little tree in the wild.

While the colorful light displays always delight me in the moment, that little tree in the woods makes me pause and think. Its twinkling lights remind me of the times when my own life was a mess of unruly growth and confusion – until God’s grace showed up and lit a path out of the chaos. That grace has come through words of encouragement from a family member or friend, the offering of forgiveness I didn’t deserve, a new opportunity I didn’t think possible – and sometimes the unexpected kindness of a stranger.

It’s funny that something as simple and ordinary as a string of lights on a scrubby tree can have such a powerful impact. But isn’t that what the Christmas story is all about?

“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known;

along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;

I will turn the darkness into light before them

and make the rough places smooth.”

(Isaiah 42:16)