I was in church a couple of Sundays ago and the sanctuary was full, our organist was utilizing the full power of that one of the mightiest creations of mankind to fill the church with the magnificent Christmas hymns which I have loved since I was a small child. When I say, “fill the church,” I mean vibrating off the wall. I was talking with someone after the service, and I told him how I strive to get to church early each Sunday, so I don’t miss any of what our organist and that organ creates. He told me that he feels just as I do, that our organist doesn’t even seem to be pushing the keys and foot pedals, that it is as if she is just there, and the music is somehow just flowing through her.
And it wasn’t just the music that captured the people, there was a palpable energy, sort of an electricity, which all present seemed to be experiencing. There is just something special about people gathering in the church around Christmastime that is different from any other time of year. Beyond the power of the pipe organ bellowing out the Christmas melodies, and the huge wreaths covering the walls, there is the energy of a full house of people, which is greater than the sum of all of the individual parts. I’m not saying that I see God in the room, but He was probably there.
What sets Christmas gatherings apart from the normal weekly gatherings, where a number of those present stand up and tell the church of the problems they are facing, or express their gratitude for good outcomes in stressful circumstances? I guess that it is throughout the year we are faced with all of the stresses of life, but at Christmastime, we are celebrating the One who came to lift the burdens, because if life were only one hardship after another and there were no eternal power who was watching and who cared, then what?
I know that I’m not alone in feeling this way because I frequently hear others around me, who are going through difficulties, say how grateful they are for the Lord’s help, while adding, “I don’t know how people can make it without Christ.” In answer to that question, speaking for myself, when I am praying about some of the residual impact of some of the most trying problems I have had in my life, I don’t say, “Lord, why did you allow that to happen?” As painful as it is to think back on these things, I can begin to see how he taught me things that I need to know in this life, about this life.
I conclude by saying, “Lord, thank you for coming to Earth; I need you; we all need you.”
Merry Christmas.
Hall, the Herald’s publisher, writes from Wildwood Crest.
