Christmas Voices

Christmas got a lot of voices ringing. Fa la la la la, la la la la. We got your angel voice, we got the shepherds, we got Mary herself, we got the wise men, and we got Herod and the bad guys too. We got a gross amount of sayings, and these give us a strange wonderful feeling each year. Most of the utterances we gloss over till they come up in a Carol or two. Here we find the third named angel with Michael and Gabriel. His name is Herald, and we discover him in the hymn,” Hark the Herald angel sing.” Ho ho ho! Frankly, all this fun stuff rings our bell, and permits itself, as long as we don’t get carried away.

These days, Christmas remains the same joyous time with one big exception; the depth of the story took a home in my soul one year and now Christmas forevered itself. It jumped off the page of history into its eternal edifice, drew me inside and closed the door. Now I live at the manger, I go on the flight of refuge, I hide with the child, I watch as they unite at the angel’s voice of direction. I sense the providence of the Father.

I grow with the Christ child; I listen at the temple at 12, and carpenter tools sing to me till 30. I’m there in the hot desert, and hunger, a stranger quizzes. The Father’s voice rings, “this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” I carry a bottomless basket and feed part of 5000, and 4000. I watch and smell a Lazarus rising, I see tears turn to laughter; I jump up and down with a son reinvigorated, and a daughter, and 10 lepers, a lame man, a blind and a deaf. I raise my hands, I run and turn around, and smile and laugh and scream, Halleluiah.” The voice says “O ye of little faith, why did you doubt?”

See the robed Pharisees, they speak with forked tongue, and the common people who clamor in confusing tones, they don’t know what they want. Some dreamy eyed folks think they see a Messiah; they want one. They are right. Then a mob falls backwards at His presence with banging mail coats, a bloody ear comes off but re-gathers itself on a soldiers head as men shriek and swords re-sheath. Darkness, thick, invades every earth corner, a chill enters the spine, a crimson man hangs and dies. We flee, frantic; we deny and feel shame. We want to make it right, we can’t, and it’s too late.

We look but He has been stolen, we sense outrage and dread. He warns, “Do not touch me; I have not yet gone to the Father.” We chat while burning on Emmaus, He walks through a wall, and we touch His sides and hands. He calls out, “Peter do you love me?” “feed my sheep” We see his eyes. We watch Him rise. Fire falls and sits on our heads, we preach in other men’s languages. The subject? Christ and Him crucified. It’s Jesus, sweet Savior of the world.

Merry Christmas, at all levels we wish, but don’t limit Him. “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he.” Forget about sugar plums and dances of fairies. Get off the polar express and meager toy quest. Jump out of the fantasy and sentimental “I’ll be home for Christmas” stuff. Perry Como you’re ok, but gimme something real.

At Christmas people cry, they look back, they miss, they pine, and they hope to go where they can’t. Depression, have your day, want to die, feel despair. Sing “Jingle bells” and really try hard or blow it off and get high or drunk. Anything but this: Jesus, come into my heart and take me away with you to heaven, to your joy and peace, your love eternal, acceptance and friendship.

Let Him take you into ”Glory land,” to Beulah land, to the land beyond the sky, and to your eternal home, but today. Find reality in a true dream, lift your weary head my child and fly away with Him. Thrill in the bliss of salvation, enter with both feet into the “Old old story” and never go back. Get the true reason for the season, and leave the cute quotes in the wind. We have our Savior, we have our Savior!!! Merry Christmas and love ya!!!