"till he appeared and the soul felt its worth." As far as Christmas songs go, O Holy Night is a favorite to many. This line above hits me in a new way each time I hear it.
When Christ appeared, the soul knew and understood its worth. We do not understand our worth apart from Christ. A truth I sometimes tire of hearing, but constantly need to listen to. It's even better when you consider the line before this one- long lay the world in sin and error pining. When we know the reality of our spiritual state, we see our worth in a new light. The poem that this Christmas song was adapted from was written by a self-proclaimed atheist. Below follows the original poem (in English, but you can read the actual original in french here) -- Midnight, Christians, it is the solemn hour, When God as man descended unto us To erase the stain of original sin And to end the wrath of His Father. The entire world thrills with hope On this night that gives it a Saviour. People kneel down, wait for your deliverance. Christmas, Christmas, here is the Redeemer, Christmas, Christmas, here is the Redeemer! May the ardent light of our Faith Guide us all to the cradle of the infant, As in ancient times a brilliant star Guided the Oriental kings there. The King of Kings was born in a humble manger; O mighty ones of today, proud of your greatness, It is to your pride that God preaches. Bow your heads before the Redeemer! Bow your heads before the Redeemer! The Redeemer has broken every bond: The Earth is free, and Heaven is open. He sees a brother where there was only a slave, Love unites those that iron had chained. Who will tell Him of our gratitude, For all of us He is born, He suffers and dies. People stand up! Sing of your deliverance, Christmas, Christmas, sing of the Redeemer, Christmas, Christmas, sing of the Redeemer!
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With the end of November came the end of the "NaNoWriMo" competition, where writers from around the world sign up to pen 50,000 words within 30 days. I tried my hand at it this year, and failed miserably! I almost hit 10,000 words. I ended up spending 10 days out of town in the month of November so that didn't help anything, and i wrote nearly 5,000 words for a speaking engagement I had at a conference, so those 2 factors played a big part in missing my mark.
Despite that, the experience was a really good one. I learned what does and does not motivate me to seek a goal. I learned my free time outside of work is valuable, and that if I really want to dedicate myself to something, I can (...for the first week of the month, at least!) I learned that writing is hard. I learned that I love to write even more than I thought I did. There's something about putting words to what you think and how you feel that is so freeing. I'm excited to continue working on my novel even though November is over, with the hopes of finishing it before next November...so I can try my hand at NaNoWriMo in 2015 with a brand new idea. I love this time of year. I love cold winter weather, holiday parties, snow, time away from work, time with family, the hopes of am NFL playoff berth (though not this year), presents, Christmas songs, my mom's homemade toffee & russian tea cakes ... I could go on and on. Then there's a little thing called TCX ...! But in the last few years the season of Advent has eclipsed the surface-level enjoyment of these things, in a good way. I've been experiencing the heart of Advent - a desire for Jesus to come back and make everything wrong in the world right. This word Advent comes from the latin word adventus, meaning "coming." We celebrate Jesus' coming into this world. That's what Christmas is all about, isn't it? But we also focus on the desire for Jesus to come again. Advent is about the waiting and expectation of the day Jesus will come again to make things right. In my life, Advent has become this annual season where I enter into this period of waiting, longing, yearning. And while meditating on these things seems in contrast to the rest of the Christmas season, it's been so good to keep perspective on the right things. Followers of Christ love to proclaim the real meaning of Christmas - but in the midst of this, please don't miss out on the meaning and purpose behind Advent. Not just to count the days until the celebration of the birth of Christ- but to meditate on the return of Christ and what that means for us now. In Advent, we welcome Jesus to this earth, remembering his first visit and longing for his return. In Advent, we say "Maranatha" - meaning "Come, Lord." Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free; from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee. Israel's strength and consolation, hope of all the earth thou art; dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart. |
Amy WellnerEncouraging others to intentionally live out their God-given identity. Archives
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