Seven Songs Of Christmas: "Joseph's Song"

I first heard this one several years ago, it is still a very moving song to me.

How could it be this baby in my arms
Sleeping now, so peacefully
The Son of God, the angel said
How could it be?

Lord, I know He's not my own
Not of my flesh, not of my bone
Still Father let this baby be
The son of my love

 

Father show me where I fit into this plan of yours
How can a man be father to the Son of God
Lord for all my life I've been a simple carpenter
How can I raise a king, how can I raise a king?

He looks so small, His face and hands so fair
And when He cries the sun just seems to disappear
But when He laughs it shines again
How could it be?

 

Father show me where I fit into this plan of yours
How can a man be father to the Son of God
Lord for all my life I've been a simple carpenter
How can I raise a king, how can I raise a king?

How could it be this baby in my arms
Sleeping now, so peacefully
The Son of God, the angel said
How could it be? How could it be?

                                        -Michael J. Card

 

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "For Unto Us A Child Is Born"

Along with the "Hallelujah Chorus", I think this is my favorite song from Handel's Messiah. This choir sings it so perfectly...


"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:5)

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "O Come, Emmanuel"

I must include an instrumental Christmas song. Normally I'm not a huge fan of minor key music...but this one is played SO beautifully. What's not to love?

 

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

 

 

Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel, 
And ransom captive Israel, 
That mourns in lonely exile here 
Until the Son of God appear. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, our Wisdom from on high, 
Who ordered all things mightily; 
To us the path of knowledge show, 
and teach us in her ways to go.

 
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, oh, come, our Lord of might, 
Who to your tribes on Sinai's height 
In ancient times gave holy law, 
In cloud and majesty and awe.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come O Rod of Jesse's stem, 
From ev'ry foe deliver them 
That trust your mighty pow'r to save; 
Bring them in vict'ry through the grave. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, O Key of David, come, 
And open wide our heav'nly home; 
Make safe the way that leads on high, 
And close the path to misery. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, our Dayspring from on high, 
And cheer us by your drawing nigh, 
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, 
And death's dark shadows put to flight.

 
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

 

Oh, come, Desire of nations, bind 
In one the hearts of all mankind; 
Oh, bid our sad divisions cease, 
And be yourself our King of Peace. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 
Shall come to you, O Israel!

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "Son Of God"

Words don't describe how impressed and blessed I was when I first heard this song. Just make sure you listen to it with earphones...

Son of God, Purest light
Lord on high, Is here tonight
Stamping through, This sacred sky
Suddenly Our eyes behold
Heaven's perfect Plan unfold
Son of God

Son of God, Love divine
Timeless one, Steps in to die
Who could dream Of such a thing
With us now The King of Kings
Man and angels Bow and sing
Singing Hallelujah Hallelujah

We're singing
Gloria, Hallelujah
We're singing
Gloria, Hallelujah
We're singing
Gloria, Hallelujah
We're singing Gloria

 Our God is with us
Emmanuel
Our God is with us
(We're
Singing Hallelujah)
Singing Gloria

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "Do You Have Room?"

I don't necessarily support the singers or the one who wrote the song, but I love the music and lyrics of this one.

 

Do You Have Room?

They journeyed far, a weary pair;

They sought for shelter from the cold night air.

Some place where she could lay her head,

Where she could give her Babe a quiet bed.

 

Was there no room? No corner there?

In all the town a spot someone could spare?

Was there no soul come to their aid?

A stable bare was where the family stayed.

Do you have room for the Savior? And do you seek Him anew?

Have you a place for the One who lived and died for you?

Are you as humble as a shepherd boy, or as wise as men of old?

Would you have come that night? Would you have sought the light?

Do you have room?

A star arose, a wondrous light,

A sign from God – this was the holy night,

And yet so few would go to see

The Babe who came to rescue you and me.

This Child divine is now a King.

The gift of life to all the world He brings,

And all mankind He saves from doom,

But on that night, for Him, there was no room.

Do you have room for the Savior? And do you seek Him anew?

Have you a place for the One who lived and died for you?

Are you as humble as a shepherd boy, or as wise as men of old?

Would you have come that night? Would you have sought the light?

Do you have room?

 

Will you come tonight? Will you seek the light?

Do you have room?

 

© S. Edwards 2004

 

 

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "Breath Of Heaven"

This song was introduced to me by a daughter a few years ago as being one of her favorites. It's definitely one of mine now, too. I was all by myself when I listened to this the other day so I let the tears flow...Yes, it's that's beautiful-especially with the clips from "The Nativity" movie.

I have traveled many moonless nights

Cold and weary with a babe inside

And I wonder what I've done

Holy Father, You have come

And chosen me now to carry Your Son

 

I am waiting in a silent prayer

I am frightened by the load I bear

In a world as cold as stone

Must I walk this path alone?

Be with me now, be with me now

 

Breath of Heaven, hold me together

Be forever near me, Breath of Heaven

Breath of Heaven, lighten my darkness

Pour over me Your holiness for You are holy

Breath of Heaven

 

Do you wonder as you watch my face

If a wiser one should have had my place?

But I offer all I am

For the mercy of Your plan

Help me be strong, help me be, help me

 

Breath of Heaven, hold me together

Be forever near me, Breath of Heaven

Breath of Heaven, lighten my darkness

Pour over me Your holiness for You are holy

Breath of Heaven, hold me together

Be forever near me, breath of Heaven

 Breath of Heaven, lighten my darkness

Pour over me Your holiness for You are holy

Breath of Heaven, Breath of Heaven

Breath of Heaven

                                           -C. Eaton/A. Grant

 

Seven Songs Of Christmas: "The Wexford Carol"

I have been blessed with listening to Christmas music this season, some of which I had never heard. Over the next seven days I would like to post them here for you, in the order of which I found them.

This first one is "The Wexford Carol" or "Good People All, This Christmas-Time", a traditional Irish Christmas carol originating from County Wexford and dating to the 12th century.
(This might not work for some of you. In that case, just go here.)

Here are the lyrics, for those who like to follow along.

Good people all, this Christmas time,

Consider well and bear in mind

What our good God for us has done

In sending his beloved son

With Mary holy we should pray,

To God with love this Christmas Day

In Bethlehem upon that morn,

There was a blessed Messiah born

The night before that happy tide

The noble Virgin and her guide

Were long time seeking up and down

To find a lodging in the town

But mark right well what came to pass

From every door repelled, alas

As was foretold, their refuge all

Was but a humble ox's stall

Near Bethlehem did shepherds keep

Their flocks of lambs and feeding sheep

To whom God's angel did appear

Which put the shepherds in great fear

Arise and go, the angels said

To Bethlehem, be not afraid

For there you'll find, this happy morn

A princely babe, sweet Jesus, born

With thankful heart and joyful mind

The shepherds went the babe to find

And as God's angel had foretold

They did our Saviour Christ behold

Within a manger he was laid

And by his side a virgin maid

Attending on the Lord of Life

Who came on earth to end all strife

There were three wise men from afar

Directed by a glorious star

And on they wandered night and day

Until they came where Jesus lay

And when they came unto that place

Where our beloved Messiah lay

They humbly cast them at his feet

With gifts of gold and incense sweet.

 

I See A Star

I see a star! I am but four and it is Christmas morning. With my father holding my hand, my two brothers, one sister and I take a morning walk down the road by our house.  He tells us to look up and he points out the Morning Star shining brightly in the tropical sky. 

It is a scene I will never forget, the oldest memory that I have, blessing and warming me every time I think of it.



I looked out my window one morning last week and noticed that same (same!) Star, shining so brightly and clearly in the beautiful, cloudless early morning sky...a cold North Carolina one. The almost-sunrise horizon fades into a deep blue and that Morning Star hangs there. Brilliant and captivating, it seems to say "Remember how God used a bright star on that first Christmas night? I am here to remind you to think of Him, our Bright and Morning Star."



I see a star! I see a star!
 I see a heavenly light!
Beautiful star! Wonderful star!
 It shines on a Babe tonight.
My friends the angels are singing:
 "Joy to the whole wide world!
Peace be unto you!" they sing,
 'neath heavens with stars unfurled.
                         -Hilda O. McMillan

"I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the Bright and Morning Star." (Revelation 22:16)

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

December Scenes

No words needed for these, just some scenes and objects that have caught my eyes this month...and that of my camera. Some are Christmasy, some are not, but all are to be admired for one reason or another.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll probably add some more later. December isn't done yet!

These are busy days. Do take time to meditate on the many wonderful, heart-stopping, mind-boggling and soul-warming truths of the Christmas story.

 

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given..." (Isaiah 9:6)

 

My Favorite Christmas Songs

I love Christmas carols! There are my oldie-goldie favorites of "What Child Is This?", "I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" but my current new ones (although they've been around for several years) are "Mary, Did You Know?", "Joseph's Song" and "Breath Of Heaven". (I do not necessarily endorse all of the singers.)

I should put these in a playlist so that they'll automatically play for you here while you read this, but for now just click on each of the above titles for it to open up in another window while you look at these photos that I have made (or will make) into Christmas cards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory,

the glory as of The Only Begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

I Am Not Ashamed

I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. I am not ashamed of the true Christmas story!

 

Although I know that the true meaning and story of Christmas is seen and heard less and less every year, it does not cease to be very disturbing and sad to see this. When I went to the mall last Saturday, I did not see one Christmas decoration that had anything to point to the birth of Christ. Not surprising, I suppose, since those things seem to be prohibited in public anymore.  And when I was looking on netflix for a Christmas video so that some grands could watch it, I only found two (out of 72) that had anything to do with the true Story. One of those was SO old the quality was terrible and the other was mixed with the secular story so...yeah, the choices were less than desirable.

Well, I am only one person and we are only one family on this huge planet called earth...a drop in the bucket among the 7,057,663,328 people that are living here (as of this writing).  But we are doing our teeny, drop-in-the-bucket part to let the world know that we still celebrate Christmas for the REAL reason that it began to be celebrated: the birth of our Saviour and Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. (You can read more about it here and here and here and here-for starters.)

 

My husband has been giving out some different kinds of evangelistic tracts during this year. Here is his most recent one, a button to pin on something. I chose to put one on my purse, in plain view where anyone can see it...

He also ordered this sign to put in our front yard...

(You can order the above items from here.)

   I also make "fotocards". If you are one of those (few) real people who still send real Christmas cards via real mail using real ink, real envelopes and real stamps (sorry, I had to rub that in), you know how difficult it is to find cards that have something in them that refer to the true story of Christmas. 

I like the fact that I can promote the Story of which I am not ashamed! I am also thankful that I live in a country where this is still allowed (to a certain degree). Some of you who are reading this, because you live in "certain" countries, do not have this liberty...but God has allowed you to have internet (yay!) so that you can read this. THAT is one of my special blessings!

 

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold,

I bring you good tidings of great joy,

which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour,

which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe

wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel

a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace, good will toward men.

(Luke 2:10-14)

 

I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed. (Psalm 119:46)

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth...(Romans 1:16)

Christmas: God's Pursuit Of Man

"At the heart of the Christmas message is the wonderful truth of God's pursuit of every one of us."      -J. Stowell (Our Daily Bread)

"But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son,
born of a woman,
born under the Law, 
so that He might redeem those 
who were under the Law,
that we might receive
the adoption as sons. 
Because you are sons,
God has sent forth the Spirit
of His Son into our hearts,
crying, Abba! Father!” 
                         -Galatians 4:4-6 (NASB)


How thankful I am for God's relentless pursuit of me. He did His utmost to provide for my salvation, to bring me to Himself. What love! What grace! What an unspeakably beautiful gift!


Every December I am saddened and gladdened all at the same time. The beautiful truths of the Christmas story are more than enough to gladden the heart and soul of all who take the time to think of it. But the ignorance and neglect of those truths are so very obvious as we mingle with the Christmas shoppers, watch TV or even look for items that refer to the real meaning of Christmas! However, we don't need to dwell on the sadness but, rather, on the joy of the Good News of salvation which is for all.


A Merry and Blessed Christmas to all who are reading this!

Merry Christmas!

(click on above picture to enjoy it more!)

HUH??

Well, this is the first week of winter here,

it's the 25th day of the month,

 the weather is getting colder, foggier and drearier (is that a word?),

which often makes my husband build a fire

in our fireplace...

AND the poinsettias (mine) are in full bloom!

This all makes me come to the conclusion

that this could be Christmas.

At least I can pretend it is.

And why not? Christ's birth is worth celebrating all year long!

Merry Christmas to all!

(I might even play some Christmas music

 and make cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate...)

Favorite Christmas Foto #2

You may wonder what this is that I would pick it to be my favorite photo of the past several days! I really wanted to post some of our grandchildren who visited but since I only wanted one picture I settled for this one.

This was at the Christmas Tea that we had at our house several days ago for the ladies from our church. I had made some simple napkin rings from keychain rings and little silk roses and they were obviously very happy with them. When I saw them putting their hands together with the little red roses on them it just looked like the prettiest little picture...which it is!

Born To Die

All over the world today many people are celebrating Christmas. Sadly, very sadly, only a small percentage of those are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, which we know is the real reason for this season of joy.

Very often over the past few weeks I have thought of the reason that Jesus was sent to earth: TO DIE. Yes, He was born to die! That does not bring us sadness but, rather, great joy for it was because of His death that we are able to live.  

A forever life with Him...What a precious and beautiful gift He gave to us and that is why we can have such great joy as we celebrate this Christmas Day!

May you know and experience the True Joy of Christmas this year.

Merry Christmas to all!

"For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me.

And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me...that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life..."  -John 6:38-40

Favorite Christmas Fotos #1

It will only be Thursday by the time I post this but...close enough, I say, to Friday. This pink Christmas decoration was in the house where we spent the weekend in the state to the north of us and I admired it every time I walked by it. The Christmas greeting photo to the right is a close-up of this one.

The lady of the house was a fellow lover of roses...even PINK ones! Here's another of the decorations that I saw there...

 These kinds of things are gifts from Him to bring joy to my life!