Christmas Impromptu
December 23, 2007 by Ingrid Schlueter
My kids were helping me clean Saturday with company coming when Jonathan said, “let’s sing some Christmas carols!” I looked at my watch dubiously, but figured we had time for a musical break. I’m really glad we did. Mary, William and Jonathan gathered around the piano, and we sang our way through the Advent and Christmas carols. William then took my place at the piano and we sang a few of them again. We were on our third rendition of “O Come All Ye Faithful” when I realized that time was getting away from us. It’s impromptu moments when we discard the business of the season and focus on the meaning of it all, the Lord Jesus, that make Christmas what it should be.
Earlier in the week, a discussion at the supper table spilled over into the living room, and my husband led us in a wonderful time of discussion about the Lord and hearing from the Word. For once, nobody had a job to rush off to, or homework to do. The Lord was the center of the entire evening as the discussion just seemed to grow and grow with all the kids participating. It was a rare and beautiful time, and completely unexpected.
Then this Lord’s day, ice and bad roads kept us all home from church. Once again, we enjoyed an unexpected time of family worship and concentrated reading of the Word. Tom led us through the Old Testament prophecies of Christ’s coming, we sang hymns and shared in prayer. It was a wonderful family time with the Lord that wasn’t planned.
If you get snowed in, or if someone in your family suggests singing hymns or carols at what might seem an inopportune time, seize the moment. A time of great spiritual treasure can await!
I pray that all of you have a deeply meaningful Christmas in the Lord.
“Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift.”
–2 Corinthians 9:15
Ingrid,
Great thoughts. Instead of receiving gifts this year, I did my shopping (<$100) to my dearest friends, which include my voice teacher and her friend (both of whom have influenced me in taking a harder stand against the pop-rock Emergent music because of its lack of theology), and two whom are in the fights of their lives.
As I reflect this Christmas night on the Birth of the Messiah, I am reminded of Hannah, a 7-year old girl whom I ran the Bi-Lo Marathon over the past year in her honour. She is batting acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and I gave her a New King James Bible for Christmas, to remind her that whatever she is enduring, God’s Word will help her.
The other story was Michelle, a 27-year old friend of mine from college who was diagnosed in April with a cancerous growth in her spine. She had the growth cut from her but has been paralysed and out of work since then. Insurance has sadly run out on Michelle and I’ve done a few fund-raisers to help her medical bills. A visit to her family over the weekend was well-deserved. (They also need prayer that their church turns away from the Emergent mode. I’ve already made overtones at home about leaving church over Emergent attitudes and have pulled tithes from the church in light of recent discoveries of all ministry work being cut back while the pastor’s salary is the only finance being increased in funding in 2008.)
One listen to the masterful hymns and sacred works of the past for Christmas has given me much to ponder. I thank God for opening my world to things such masterpieces, including one I’ve sung with my voice teacher. There is so much meaning in those pieces I wish radio would play them.
Christ’s birth gave the world hope that first Christmas, and once again that hope can be shown that there is hope for both Hannah and Michelle.
Friends from church came over to our house on the 23rd and we also had an impromptu German carol sing! So much fun. Those old songs are the gift that keeps giving.
I recieved an unusual Christmas gift this year, praise God! I decided not to drive 400 miles to see my brother this year so I spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day alone. I was listening to a Christmas CD and started to sing along and sang about 4-5 hymns. Christmas Day I realized something: I have not been able to sing more than 1 verse and maybe a single stanza of any hymn for the last 4 years. Every time I tried to sing my throat would hurt and I would begin to gag and cough. I really hated this because I have sung in church choirs all my life and even sang with the small ensemble at my old church. It was really terrible for me to be in church or at a carol service and not be able to sing the songs I love so much.
Right now I’m a little afraid to try again but praise God I at least had one night of song.
Hey, Les have you thought of seeing a good ENT doctor to get checked out? Maybe you have a medical problem and haven’t realized it yet. I am not a great singer but I like to make a joyful noise unto the Lord and am never happier then when we are singing at Church. I especially like the old hymns which are so full of theology. Happy New Year to you, brother.
I love the evenings when we are all together. To sit together, to read the Bible, to pray, and to sing is such a precious time. Moments like these carry us through the rough times.
Blessings,
Mrs Lavender