 There are many things I love about Christmas and most center around the glorious fact that for a brief window of time we as Christians are given the awesome opportunity to sing God's praises where ever we go. A thrill goes up my spine when I hear the gospel being broadcast in almost every public venue - reaching those who have yet not heard the gospel or those who are usually closed to the good news. Christmas seems to be the time when the walls of cynicism, doubt and rationalism are let down. I find myself singing along to the background music in local stores and I sheepishly grin as I realize I am not the only one so inclined. Several years ago, I was asked to put together song sheets for a Christmas party. As I typed the lyrics to old favourites, I found myself doing so from memory alone. Stanza after stanza of old familiar carols tripped easily off my fingertips. These songs were as much a part of my Christmas pasts as were the memories of Christmas baking and the sight of twinkling lights on the tree. However, as I proofread my work, I paused, seeing the songs in a new light. So many of the carols I sang from rote since before I could remember carried in them the full glorious good news of Jesus Christ! I have never been able to sing a christmas carol since that day without being full of gratitude and wonder. God promises us in Isaiah 55:10-11. "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." May I encourage you this holy season? Don't be timid in declaring to those around you the gospel of Jesus Christ. Proclaim his truth by singing those songs of our faith with deliberate intention and the full attention you would give to God in any other time of worship. It doesn't matter if you sing off-key, your heart is never off key when you sing praises to the Lord! Sing with the surety that as you sing out his truth, God will plant seeds in the hearts of those around you. Yes, the old favourites warm our hearts with Christmas memories but they can also fan into flame God's presence in the hearts and lives of those hearts who lay dormant. In that spirit, I offer a link to lyrics for a few of the christmas hymns I gathered over the years. May you be blessed as you bring the promise and hope of Christmas into the lives of those who desperately need the light of the World to invade the darkness that threatens to surround them. Everlasting Father, I ask you to come to those whose hearts ache on your Son's birthday. They are hurting and lonely. Father, let them know it's okay to give you the pain and loneliness and frustration that rests in their hearts. Enable them through your grace to know you are listening -- and that you care. Come to those who grief as the Father of all comfort. Emmanuel, I pray for those who are single and who have no family -- who spend much of the holidays alone. Be with them in the lonely hours, help them not to feel marginalized during this season that places so much emphasis on 'family'. Remind them of your open ended invitation of adoption into your eternal family. Give them the grace to allow you to enter into the lonely places of their heart. I pray for those who are housebound and infirm and are unable to leave their homes or hospital rooms due to illness. I pray for those with loved ones that are separated by work and sacrificial duty. Come to them as their beloved friend. Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace, I pray for families who struggle financially and emotionally. I pray for desperate spouses who worry over their marriage. I pray for those children who are frightened and alone and for those children who live in abusive homes. Be with the small ones who sense the worry and frustration that their parents try to hide. Bring your hope, bring your peace. Mighty God, I pray for parents who watch helplessly as their children deal with life-threatening illnesses. Come as the the great Physician, Come as deliverer and set free those who are bound by the chains of addiction and self-destructive behavior. Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, please enter into each place, each home, each hospital room, each homeless shelter, each hotel, each jail cell, each place of business - let your children know they are not alone. Holy Spirit, please come as the Comforter and let your gentle healing warmth soothe and bring solace to their aching hearts. I pray this in the name of Jesus -- who knows our sorrows and understands our hearts. ©2010 Katherine Walden
 "Blessings of Christmas" is a ministry of "I Lift My Eyes Web Ministries" . We invite you check out the rest of our ministry site.
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