52 Little Lessons from It's A Wonderful Life

"It's full of romance, that old place. I'd like to live in it." ~ Mary, on the night she and George throw rocks and make wishes at the old Granville House.

This is the quote from Chapter 19, titled " Don't look for What is, but for What May Be" in the book, 52 Little Lessons from It's A Wonderful Life by Bob Welch. In this chapter, the reader is reminded of how vastly different George and Mary view their world; for George at 12 years old working the soda fountain he informs Mary where Coconuts come from, "Tahiti, Fiji Islands, the Coral Sea!" Mary has no idea where they come from, she just wants chocolate ice cream while George wants to go exploring.

But here's the thing about Mary Hatch: She knows what matters. She has keen insight. Imagination. Initiative. Intuition. Perspective. And, when you boil it right down, wisdom. And what it all seems to tell her is this: the grass isn't necessarily greener somewhere else. Why not, instead, take what you have right now, right here, and make the most of it?

We first see that in the soda shop scene. Forget the ice cream. Forget the Fiji Islands. What Mary wants, among other things we can assume, is to grow up and marry George Bailey. It may only be puppy love, but when Mary whispers into George's bad ear, "I'll love you till the day I die," we're witnessing the initiative of a young woman who knows something good when she sees it. Never mind that this model comes with its deficiencies; the kid can't hear out of one ear since he jumped into that icy pond to save his brother. Despite George's weaknesses, Mary sees something special in him. Mary sees potential in things where most see only weaknesses, like God does with us. He doesn't care as much about where we've been as where we are going. About what we look like now as what we might look like in the future. About the defeats of yesterday as what might be our victories of tomorrow. With Him, all things are made new. Even decrepit folks like us." (pg, 74)



This book takes readers back to their favorite Christmas classic and teaches us through the movie, It's a Wonderful Life, how God wants us to learn things through His word to make us better people. I am so excited to share this treasure with you through my review and since there are 52 lessons captured in this book, there is one for each week, but I had to read them all. Such classic lines are quoted to open each of the chapters, and we are taken back to specific clips in the movie to see things we didn't know were there, little nuggets of pure Godly wisdom that when applied can change our perspective on things much like how Mary Hatch views the Granville House that is abandoned and in a state of complete disrepair. George doesn't even want to live in it as a ghost but Mary sees the potential of what good be.

We are reminded that it's far too easy to focus on how bad things look instead of simply changing our perspectives and seeing the greatness that is there instead. Mary's ability to take what life has given her and she makes the most of it. Quite simply, Mary teaches us that the best things in life are simple things that surround us, especially when coupled with our imaginations. Then we can exploit those things for goodness. And with God's help, to make it more than anyone else could have imagined.



I received 52 Little Lessons from It's A Wonderful Life by Bob Welch compliments of Thomas Nelson Publishers for my honest review and HIGHLY RECOMMEND this one to anyone who is a fan of It's A Wonderful Life. There are such amazing things tucked inside this wonderful book, fun movie facts, and life lessons that are bound to keep the Christmas spirit going inside us all year long. I easily rate this as a 5 out of 5 stars and will definitely keep this one near me all year long for reference and a constant reminder of what is good in our lives everyday if we are simply willing to find it.

For more information on this book, the author Bob Welch and where to pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

52 Little Lessons from It's A Wonderful Life by Bob Welch

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