Advent 2023

Week 2 - Joy

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

(Luke 2: 13-14)

When I think of the songs of Christmas, it's not just one particular song that stands out. My mind and heart go to one particular song at one particular place at one particular time. In years past, the cantata service in our church has begun with Angels We Have Heard On High. 

When that happens, I always try to get up to the balcony. From there, the confluence of choir and orchestra and organ and 600 voices make for a "joyful noise" that is simply overwhelming to me. In those instances, I can't even sing along; all I can do is stand and listen as "the mountains in reply, echo their joyous strains". If the angels sounded anything like this, it's no wonder that the shepherds ran to Bethlehem to see this thing that had come to pass. 

While I love the lullabies of Christmas like Away in a Manger and Silent Night, it's the celebration songs that touch me the most and this one in particular. While we don't want to wake the baby, we can always go to the hills and sing with the angels.

So, if the perfect storm of song and place and time happens again and the balcony dwellers see me slip in, just go on singing. I'm just there to here angels rejoice.

Prayer

Lord, help me to add my voice to the celebrations of the angels and sing “Joy to the World”! Amen.

This devotional was written by Charlie Barton and read by Sally Stovall.

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