Today our Christmas tree comes down. It’s a big job and I’m still trying to pump myself up to do it. Has to be done, it’s getting too dry. But we always love our Christmas tree, and once it’s gone, we’ll miss it for a while.
The thing we want, though, is to make this Christmas work all year, by God’s sovereign grace, in answer to our prayers–to make it carry on all the way to Christmas 2019, drawing people’s hearts to Jesus Christ Our Lord, amen.
The creche is still on display at St. Francis’ Church, across the street, and our tree is still up in our living room, so… one more Christmas hymn: and again we pray, Father, give this Christmas season power to do its work all year, drawing our hearts to Jesus Christ our Savior and our King.
A spirited rendition of this good old hymn, Good Christian Men, Rejoice! Sorry, I can’t identify the performers. Well done and thank you, whoever you are.
Well, the Creche is still on display at St. Francis’, across the street, and our tree’s still up–so what do you say to a little more Christmas music? How about Nat King Cole, and Hark! the Herald Angels Sing?
I pray the Lord will give this Christmas the power to work all throughout the year.
So what’s he doing, playing this carol two weeks after Christmas?
Just saying again: Christmas needs to work all year. We need for God’s Spirit to be on the job 24/7.
Hence The Angel Gabriel, sung by Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band.
I really didn’t want to write up any more nooze today, so I was happy when Joshua came up with this Christmas hymn request: Angels We Have Heard on High, by Fernando Ortega. Ah, that’s better!
Please join me in prayer.
O Lord our God! In Jesus’ name, please bless this Christmas season and give it power to work all throughout the year, every night and every day, to draw our hearts to Jesus Christ and move us to work and pray for His Kingdom. Amen.
The fallen world’s in trouble, headed straight to Hell, needs saving–
So God sent His Son. Not as a conqueror, but as a baby for whom there was no room at the inn. As an adult, He was a penniless wanderer. He was put to death in a shameful manner usually reserved for the worst criminals, although He had committed no crime.
By this His Son God saved the world.
What Child Is This?, sung by the Robert Shaw Chorale.
By now I think the baby Jesus would have been moved out of the manger, and into a cradle in a rented house, where the Wise Men found him. But the manger is such an enduring symbol of Christmas, and I want to hold on to this Christmas a little longer–because I pray for its spirit to work all year long, every day.
So here is Away in a Manger, sung by the Lutheran Warbler.
Does the beauty of Christmas ever move you to tears? Let it! We are stranded in an age in wherein, by sin and negligence, the guilty “investigate” the innocent: but Christmas brings the assurance of our rescue. Christ Jesus is our Savior: He will deliver us.
Silent Night: Andre Rieu with the violin solo, backed up by his choir and orchestra. Balm for the spirit.
This is the hymn that greeted me this morning, so this is the one I’ll post first–O Worship the King, performed by Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band.
But we are still taking requests for Christmas hymns, and if you’ve got any, I’m happy to post them.
In my own lifetime the world has never needed Christmas more than it needs it now.
Now it’s 2019 (gotta get used to writing that!), and let’s start off with a hymn requested by “TheWhiteRabbit,” The Angel Gabriel–sung by the King’s College Choir at Cambridge.
We’re still doing Christmas hymns, folks, so if you have any requests, please feel free to make them.