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Joy to the World

by Jerry Ousley  
12/24/2010 / Holidays

When we were Pastors Deb and I, along with several other adults, would to take a group of kids Christmas caroling every year. One of the standard songs we'd sing was "Joy to the World" by George F. Handel. It is a very old song written in the sixteenth century. The wonderful thing about that song is that regardless how old it may be the words still ring forth true.

One particular year Deb and I were the only adults accompanying the kids and we decided to just walk around town. It was cold and we had bundled up to accommodate but still, by the end of the night we were freezing. I carried my guitar and I've got to tell you that my fingers were so cold that it was getting hard to form the chords to play the music.

We got to the place that we limited ourselves to three songs at each stop and one of those songs was "Joy to the World." We only sang the first verse because it was easy to remember. We did that song so many times that finally one of the teenage boys threatened, "If we sing that song one more time I'm going to wrap that guitar around your neck!" I think he was getting tired of it, don't you?

With Christmas coming up in just a few days our thoughts are steered toward the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, or at least they should be. To some this holiday may not be filled with joy. I don't know if it's because winter is coming on or if it just happens that way but it seems that many lose loved ones close to Christmas and it becomes a sad time for them. I understand that. One of Deb's brothers passed away very close to Christmas. It took a couple of years for his wife to feel good about the holiday again.

For others Christmas has been so busy that they feel like they need a vacation afterwards to recover from the event. Many have spent more money than they should have on gifts, especially on their children. I know how that goes because we want our kids to have a good Christmas. But when we overspend then it may take the rest of the coming year to pay for it.

Still others have scheduled themselves so tightly with events and responsibilities that it's hard to enjoy the holiday. I know that we used to do that. We tried to have a dinner for the congregation, caroling for the kids, provide a Christmas dinner for the elderly and shut-ins, put on a play and also carol at a local nursing home. That's a lot to do in a two week period of time. They were all good things to do but man, by the time it was over you just wanted to sink deep into a good recliner, disappear from the world and hope no one called for a few days.

While we should do things for others at Christmas if it isn't providing joy to us then perhaps we need to rethink and re-plan our holiday. I love the gift-giving tradition. But it isn't about giving gifts. I love the dinners because I like to eat. I love the events, pageants and parties, but when you have to rest from your holiday then just maybe we've tried to cram in too much.

Whatever we plan and whatever we do this year, it is imperative that we figure out how to put the joy back into Christmas. What was Mr. Handel so overjoyed about anyway? It was the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Isaiah received a prophecy that reached into the mysteriousness of this joy. In Chapter 9 he was speaking of the freedom of Israel from her enemies but parts of the prophecy went beyond what was taking place in his time. It extended to the birth of our Lord. Verse 2 says, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined." Then skipping to verses 6 we continue to read, "For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called, Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." How desperately this world needed that Child, that Son of God. He is all of these things to us if we allow Him to be. No wonder we can sing, "Joy to the World!"

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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