God's Gift to me this Christmas

God and I have this thing at Christmas.  He almost always surprises me with a gift.  He knows how much I love music - especially Christmas music - so little wonder most of those gifts have been centered around a song.

All the more remarkable that this year I didn't even think to start listening to Christmas music on the radio until sometime around the 8th of December.  There have been a lot of distractions late this year.

Driving to work this past Friday, as I turned onto Industrial Drive, a beautiful soaring duet came on the radio - a soft piano opening,  the female lead's pure solo, the confident male accompaniment delicately blending and balanced so perfectly.  Gave me chills.  Sometimes in beautiful music you can hear Heavenly reverb.  That's what I heard.

The song was the first in a set, followed by 2 others.  I waited for the radio announcer to name the song and the artists, and ... guess what?  He mentioned the last song, but not the others.  This has happened before, and like the other times, I was not a happy camper.  I have actually called radio stations to find out what song played on a certain date and time!

So here I was given a wonderful and beautiful blessing, and I'm upset because I can't listen again and share the song with my family.

Sunday morning I'm at my computer trying to find my way to the name of the song and the artists.  I found many beautiful Christmas songs ... but not that one.  Later as I started the car for the drive to church, there was a Christmas song playing on the radio.  Then, as I neared Highway 167, the next one began - a soft piano opening, a soaring female voice ...

This time the announcer named the artist, and with a few words of the song, I was able to look it up!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.


All is Well


Yes, God gave me a gift, and, as most of us with longer associations with Him know, the gift is almost always Himself - whether wrapped in a song, a deeper glimpse into His Word, or a peek at a baby in a manger on a cold night.

When Man is the Measure of All Things

... then all things must fit that yardstick. 

 The star filled sky is reduced to miles and wavelengths. 

 No beauty. 

 No wonder or awe. 

 No need to thank anyone. 

Reality is replaced by its image - like a television soap opera.

bzzzzz zZAP!

bzzzzz 

"Hey, Martha, come look at this," says Fred Lizard to his wife. She scampers to the opening in their Grand Canyon cave to find Fred staring intently outside. 

bzzzzz bzzzzzzz 

"Look at that beautiful sunset. It just takes your breath away, doesn't it." 

bzzzzz

They stand there enraptured as the hues blend and finally darken with the fall of night. 

bzzzzz 

 Do lizards, spiders, squirrels, deer, birds, etc watch the majestic display of sunrises and sunsets? Do they feel the same sense of timelessness, awe, and inspiration as we, or are they oblivious to the whole thing? 

Actually the beginning story above can be written, "bzzzzzz zZAP!"

 

It appears the capacity for wonder is a particularly human trait. We'll stop eating to get lost in the experience of the vastness and beauty of sunrises, sunsets, storms, mountains, snowy scapes, the sea meeting the land, the fathomless blue of the deep ocean, canyons, and grassy plains. 

 We'll spend hours accomplishing nothing but taking it all in with a sense that time has not been wasted at all. In this beauty is a hint of fulfillment beyond sight. Every one sees the painting but few praise the artist. 

Earth's crammed with heaven, And every common bush aflame with God. But only those who see take off their shoes. The rest sit around and pluck blackberries. Elizabeth Barrett Browning