Santa's dreaded "naughty list" has been used by generations of parents in order to convince their kids to behave, especially around Christmas time. Growing up, you never wanted to be on the naughty list. The nice list was where it was at because we got presents for being on the nice list. This Christmas season, Target had a sweater on sale that said "On the naughty list" (You can see it here), and I of course had to buy it. While it's a funny sweater (or vaguely inappropriate depending on your view), I also found it somewhat thought provoking. What are we really teaching kids with our use of the naughty and nice list?
The whole basic idea of the "nice list" is that if you behave and do what you're told, you get a reward. If you do a kind deed for someone, you get a reward. Shouldn't we be teaching our kids that they should behave because that's the right thing to do? Shouldn't we be telling them that they should do kind deeds for others because that's what good people do? Parents wonder why kids these days are spoiled as they buy them the newest iPads, iPhones, and apple watches. They wonder why kids spend more time by themselves as parents wrap xboxes, PlayStations, and more gadgets to be opened on Christmas day. Parents wonder why their kids can be so irresponsible as they drive off in their parents' car to go shopping with their parents' money after lying about a test they just failed. Is the naughty and nice list the source of all the problems with kids today? Nope, but it seems to me that it is a problem that has yet to be addressed.
The naughty list is the exact opposite of the nice list, obviously. You're on the list if you've been bad, if you've disobeyed, or made mistakes. I, for one, am proudly on the naughty list. We live in a fallen world, so how can any of us say that we are truly good people? Are some people better than others? Sure, but I'd argue that none of us are wholly good. Who hasn't disobeyed something someone told you to do? I like to think of disobeying as a showing that I'm capable of thinking for myself and making my own decisions. Granted, it's not always the best decision to disobey people like your parents, your teachers, or the police. But if someone were to say that in order to be friends with their group, you had to eat fried worms, wouldn't you choose not to? That may be a silly example, but it makes my point. Disobeying leads right to the third aspect of the naughty list: making mistakes. Nobody is perfect. We all make bad decisions that have negative consequences at some point or another in our lives. Some people make more bad decisions than others. Some people make bigger mistakes than others.
If I had a choice, I'd much rather be on the naughty list than the nice list. Luckily, I'd wager a guess that 99% of humanity is on the naughty list, which is awesome. Why? Because our being on the naughty list, our innate human condition of sinful and fallen points to our need for a savior. That's what Christmas is really all about. It's not about making this list or that list based on your actions. It's about the world receiving the Savior it so desperately needs.
