Have you ever had the experience of something very familiar suddenly taking on new meaning? Or maybe the meaning's been there all along, but you haven't had the eyes to see it or the ears to hear it? This has happened to me with the Christmas Carol Joy to the World. The first Sunday of Advent, as the praise team began to lead our worship with this song, I thought, somewhat deflated, "Oh, Christmas Carols already?" Little did I know what God would teach me through this simple piece of familiar music. As my Christmas greeting, I'd like to share what I've learned with you.
Prepare Him Room
As I sang the phrase, "Let every heart, prepare Him room," I felt God stopped me short. In fact, I had to stop singing to hear what He was saying. "How are you preparing room--a space--for Me in your heart this Christmas season?" This led me to reflect, literally for days, on what it means to prepare a space for Him in our lives, amid all our rushing around and busyness, especially during this last month of the year.
Obviously it means to set aside time for Him--but time alone will not make room in our hearts which are cluttered with so many distractions. In preparing room for Him, I need to push aside my own preoccupations--my desires, needs, wants, thoughts--to make free space to focus on Him alone. I need to recognize, not just intellectually, but in my "inner-most being" Who it is I am making room for. The Lord, God of the Universe, who has become one of us, so we can know Him. Who stooped to our level, not just to save us, but to enable us to share intimacy with Him.
That's a word we throw around a lot in terms of our relationship with God. But this Advent season I've been led to ponder the true meaning of intimacy. Sure, I have a personal relationship with Jesus. I have personal relationships with many people, but there are few, very few, with whom I am intimate. Few to whom I open up my entire heart and invite them into each corner of my being. Few with whom I make the effort to deeply understand and appreciate who they are.
In this season He has called me not just to friendship but to intimacy with Him. To invest the time, the effort to know Him more deeply. To risk vulnerability as I invite Him into every area of my life and surrender each to Him, and Him alone. To embrace Him not only as my Savior but as my Bridegroom (cf. Matt. 25). To anticipate His coming with all of the excitement and joy of a bride awaiting her groom.
So, my quiet time has taken on a different significance this season. In it, I prepare the manger of my heart to receive Him daily, for when we invite Him, he always comes. I ready my mind, my will, my spirit to make Him welcome. To receive the magnificent love of Him Who surrendered the throne of heaven to permit me to know Him and the One who sent Him. I'm a just beginning to learn what it means, in the words of another carol, to come and adore Him.
This is my Christmas prayer and blessing for each of you. As you prepare to remember His birth in Bethlehem, may the Holy Spirit give birth in your heart to a fresh experience of his wondrous love for you. Together we can then "repeat the sounding joy" with
Christmas peace and joy,
Pat
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