Words of Reflection
The first time I saw the title of today’s song on a Spotify playlist, I recoiled a bit. It seemed irreverent, perhaps even disrespectful to one of the greatest Christmas carols ever written. I almost didn’t press “play.” I almost skipped it completely. I’m so very glad I didn’t.
Christmastime is a season where we often feel we have to “have it all together.” Houses and decorations have to be immaculate, presents well-chosen and thoughtful, family gatherings happening with nary a hiccup…this can be a time of year when we feel a lot of pressure to be perfect. That’s too much pressure for anyone to bear, and for some it becomes toxic and destructive.
Whenever I’m tempted to think I need to make Christmas “perfect,” I remember Gail. She was the volunteer at a church we served, and she was the one who would prepare the sanctuary for worship each week. One year as Advent approached she had a unique idea, and it was one that created quite a stir on the first Sunday of the season. People came into the worship space, accustomed to a gorgeous display of decorations and lights to mark the season, but this particular year they found something vastly different. In the sanctuary that year was…a lot of junk. Shopping carts tipped over, cardboard boxes scattered about, trash strewn about the front of the sanctuary—it was a mess! You could tell as people came in that they were upset at first, until the reality of what was happening started to dawn on them. Their countenance shifted when they realized that up at the front, sitting squarely in the center on all the mess, was a manger. The message started to sink in—that Jesus was born into a mess and he comes into our mess as well—and it ended up being one of the most powerful Advent seasons we ever had.
That truth—that Jesus meets us in our mess—is one that hurting people can encounter this time of year in a unique way. That was the hope of Lisa Clow, one of the songwriters of today’s devotional song. She wanted to capture in her lyrics the hope so desperately needed by those who feel exhausted, ashamed, and overly burdened during this time of year. This song reminds us that the same one born into a dirty stable is willing to be born into our lives despite all the things we struggle with that leave us feeling like a failure. He doesn’t come to shame, but to transform.
O come, barren and waiting ones
Weary of praying, come
See what your God has done
One more thing…usually during this devotional our focus is on the song and the lyrics, but this is one instance where the video is also worth nothing. The makers of this video invited people to come into the studio and listen to the song, and the reactions you see are honest and real as they process the message of good news for even the most unfaithful of us. The people in this video knew heartache, loneliness, fear, and shame, and as you watch you see the hope of Christ fill them through this unique song.
If you resonate with that need for hope today, rejoice! The one who is faithful calls the unfaithful to himself to “strengthen you to the end.” (1 Corinthians 1:8)
Scripture for Meditation:
”Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
—Matthew 11:28-30 (NRSVUE)
“She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
—Matthew 1:21 (NRSVUE)
Song: O Come All Ye Unfaithful (lyrics here)
Questions for Contemplation
Spend some time in prayer being honest with God about where you are spiritually and the things with which you struggle most right now. Use your imagination to picture that first Christmas and the chaos and mess into which Jesus was born:
How can you invite him into what you’re dealing with right now?
How might you enter a deeper realization that he isn’t asking you to “clean yourself up” before inviting him in, that he’s willing and eager to meet you right where you are, just as you are?
Spend some time sitting with the phrase “Christ is born for you.” How does your heart respond to that truth? Let your heart’s response guide you in prayer through worship, gratitude, and supplication.