{"id":24388,"date":"2022-12-01T17:00:49","date_gmt":"2022-12-02T00:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/gospel-express\/2022-gratitude-copy\/"},"modified":"2022-12-01T17:35:25","modified_gmt":"2022-12-02T00:35:25","slug":"2022-christmas","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/gospel-express\/2022-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"We Need some Christmas This Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Max Lucado<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t we? Don\u2019t we need some\u00a0Peace On Earth and Goodwill to Mankind<\/em>? Don\u2019t we need some\u00a0Silent Night, Holy Night<\/em>? Don\u2019t we need the appearance of angels, the sudden joy of shepherds and the hope, the blessed hope of a baby whose very name means salvation?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

We need someone to save us. From this rancor, this bitterness, this hostility. The question came in the form of a text: \u201cMax, are you for or against impeachment?\u201d<\/p>\n

This is a \u201cfor or against\u201d day. Red\u00a0or<\/em>\u00a0blue. Elephant\u00a0or<\/em>\u00a0donkey. Trump\u00a0or<\/em>\u00a0Pelosi.<\/p>\n

Sigh.<\/p>\n

Here is what I\u2019m for: the baby in the manger. God in a barn. God with an umbilical cord. So human he suckles milk, so divine he is worshipped by angels. A wide-eyed girl who has had a baby and never had sex. A stunned Joseph who has soldiered his way into the most improbable story in history.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cCall Him Jesus\u201d the angel told them both because that is the name that means \u201cThe Lord is salvation\u201d and this Lord, Jesus, is all about salvation. Salvation from sin, guilt, shame, death, and, yes, political mudslinging. And, Gabriel added with what might have been a smile, \u201che will be great.\u201d Great enough to silence storms, banish demons, command viruses, vacate a few graves, including his own. He\u2019s going to be great.<\/p>\n

Do we not need a great king? This world is so chaotic, life is so fragile.<\/p>\n

For or against impeachment? I\u2019m for the Hope of Christmas. And I am praying that He will do what our national leaders seem unable to do, calm us. Unite us. It\u2019s going to take a miracle. Yet, if Christ is willing to show up in a barn, then a Senate Chamber and Oval Office are within his reach.<\/p>\n

There is so much shouting going on.<\/p>\n

On the airwaves, shouting.<\/p>\n

On the news broadcasts, shouting.<\/p>\n

On social media, shouting.<\/p>\n

All sides, shouting.<\/p>\n

It is one thing to have an opinion; it\u2019s something else to have a fight. Let\u2019s reason together. Let\u2019s work together. And, if discussion fails, let love succeed. If love covers a multitude of sins, can it not cover a multitude of opinions? We need an intermezzo of calm in this cacophony of opinions.<\/p>\n

Gratefully, we have one. It\u2019s called Christmas.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Father Josef Mohr needed this reminder. He pastored the small church of Arnsdorf near Salzburg, Austria. The congregation, like the village, was comprised of simple people. They were farmers and woodworkers. There was more poverty than affluence. They worked long hours and endured harsh winters. Christmas was one of their few respites. The pastor did his best to make the holiday service special for his flock.<\/p>\n

But this year, 1818, he had a problem. The organ had become unfit for use. It was old. Mice had eaten at the bellows. The church needed a new one. But they didn\u2019t have the money. Father Mohr went to his organist and expressed his chagrin, \u201cWe must have something special for midnight mass.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is Christmas, they wondered, without music? On the day before Christmas Eve, the Father was called to administer last rites to a dying woman. By the time he returned to Arnsdorf, the hour was late. The valley and the village lay in darkness. The priest paused on a height overlooking the town. The events had left him sad: the useless organ, the death of a parishioner, the cold night and long journey.<\/p>\n

His heart, like the valley, was lost in shadows. But then he saw a faint light of a distant home. Against the black curtain of night, it shone even brighter. The priest pondered the light, then thought to himself: It must have been something like this\u2013that silent, holy night in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Suddenly inspired, he hurried home, sat over his desk and wrote:<\/p>\n

Silent Night, Holy Night,<\/em>
\nAll is dark, save the light,
\nYonder where they sweet vigils keep,
\nO\u2019er the Babe, who, in silent sleep,
\nRests in heavenly peace,
\nRests in heavenly peace.<\/em><\/p>\n

Silent night, peaceful night,<\/em>
\nDarkness flies, all is light;<\/em>
\nShepherds hear the angels sing.<\/em>
\nAlleluia! Hail the King,<\/em>
\nChrist the Savior is born,<\/em>
\nChrist the Savior is born.<\/em><\/p>\n

Upon arising the next morning, he took his lyrics to Franz Gruber, his organist. Within moments, Gruber imagined the perfect melody. When he sang the song to his wife, she told him, \u201cWe will die, you and I, but this song will live.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

It has. Christmas is not Christmas without the song, \u201cSilent Night\u201d. We cherish its promise. The world still sits in shadows. Death casts its shroud. Misfortune silences the organ. Yet, whatever the generations bring, the light of Jesus still shines.<\/p>\n

Thank God\u00a0for<\/em>\u00a0Christmas. Thank God\u00a0it\u2019s<\/em>\u00a0Christmas. Because this Christmas, we really need Christmas.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":24393,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[],"portfolio_entries":[35],"class_list":["post-24388","portfolio","type-portfolio","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","portfolio_entries-english-writer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/24388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/portfolio"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24388"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/24388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24395,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/24388\/revisions\/24395"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24388"},{"taxonomy":"portfolio_entries","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio_entries?post=24388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}