Christmas

Christmas Eve will find me,

Where the love light gleams,

I’ll be home for Christmas,

If only in my dreams.

This song was originally written in 1943 to honor soldiers during World War II

Who were overseas and who longed to be home for Christmas.

Who doesn’t want to be home for Christmas?

But sometimes Home can seem so far away.

For some home is half way across the country

And for others home is in Heaven,

Where loved ones have gone.

And so being Home for Christmas sometimes seems to be only in their dreams.

Every Christmas since that First Christmas has been about being home with family.

Because at that first Christmas,

God became flesh and made HIS home with us.

In a family,

With Mary as His mom and Joseph as His dad.

They spent their first Christmas far away from family and friends.

Joachim and Ann, Mary’s parents were back in Nazareth.

Elizabeth and Zachariah were in the hill country of Judea.

So they were all alone.

But not really.

There were Shepherds keeping watch ;

And Angels singing;

And Wise men bearing gifts

Even the animals gathered round to keep them warm.

While Mary and Joseph were far from family,

They still had so much right in front of them!

While at times we may dream about being home for Christmas

with those who are not with us;

Do not overlook those who are!

The family and friends who are right in front of you.

For That is where the Love Light gleams!

As long as we have love in our hearts,

Home is never far away.

For home is where the heart is.

In the faces of those all around us.

In the gift of love that we share with one another.

This is my home,

And that is why I am home for Christmas.

December 24

 Christmas Eve

Tonight the Word will become flesh and dwell among us. 

Tonight the Virgin Mary will give birth to a Son.

Tonight we are all innkeepers. 

Will there be room in our hearts?

Tonight we are all angels. 

Will we proclaim Peace on Earth and good will to all?

Tonight we are all shepherds,

Will we hasten to see the Lord?

Tonight we are all Wise Men,

Will we come to adore Him?

Tonight the Christ Child reminds us

That we are all children of God!

Will we see each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord?

December 23 O Emmanuel, Come!

O Come, O come Emmanuel 

And ransom captive Israel.

That mourns in lonely exile,

Until the Son of God appears. 

From slavery in Egypt to Exile in Babylon. 

Israel always seemed to be wandering;

Trying to find its way to the Promised Land

Or back to it. 

We are all Prodigal children. 

Who think they I know what they want and where they are going

Only to be disappointed and disillusioned in the end. 

Trying to find our way back home. 

Held captive by our passions and desires. 

Only when the Son of God can ransom us from sin and death

By His cross;

And only when the Son of God appears again in all of His glory,

Will we find our way home,

Dec. 21 O Desire of Nations Come!

 

O come Desire of Nations,

Bind in one the hearts of all mankind. 

Make all our sad divisions cease

And be for us the King of Peace. 

History is littered with one war after another. 

Promising to be the war to end all wars. 

One Revolution after another. 

Promising to bring Peace and equality to all. 

And they never do. 

They always fall short 

And seem to only plant the seed for another war or revolution. 

There is only One who can unite the hearts of all men. 

Who can make our sad divisions cease. 

And only when we acknowledge Him. 

Will there be Peace on Earth. 

Dec. 20 O Dayspring Come!

O Come, Thou Dayspring from on high

And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh;

Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,

And death’s dark shadow put to flight. 

Sometimes the Night can seem so long. 

One cannot get to sleep because of worries and anxieties. 

And the Dawn of Day seems to give us a respite

As does any sunny day. 

Sometimes, the Night can seem so long

As Death closes our eyes,

And we do not know when we will awaken. 

But the Dawn of Day;

The Lord who rose at the Dawn of Day,

Will awaken us with the Light of His Face

To a New Day that Never Ends. 

Dec. 19 O Root of Jesse Come!

 Dec. 19 O Root of Jesse Come!

O Come thou root of Jesse come,

from every foe deliver them;

That trust Thy mighty power to save. 

And give them victory over the grave. 

The Egyptians; the Philistines, the Assyrians,

The Babylonians, the Romans, the Nazis. 

It seems that Israel was always under attack;

And God sent them prophets 

To tell them that He would deliver them;

And He always did. 

Whenever we are under attack

From outside or from within. 

From others or from ourself. 

Trust in God’s mighty power to save

And give us victory even over the grave. 

December 18 O Adonai

December 18 O Adonai

O Adonai, and leader of the House of Israel. 

Who appeared to Moses in the burning bush

And gave him the law on Mount Sinai. 

Come and set us free with your outstretched arm. 

Adonai is Hebrew for Lord. 

Jesus is the Lord,

And while God gave Moses the law on Mount Sinai,

Jesus fulfilled the Law on Mount Calvary

The Law of Love

Sacrificial Love.