“Baby Boy, Baby Boy, tidings of great comfort and joy,
Baby Boy, Baby Boy, everybody’s talkin’ ‘bout that Baby Boy!”
Earlier this week, as I lay awake waiting for my alarm to sound, I couldn’t help but sing the chorus above and remember those happy Christmas moments. When I was in high school, the church my mom and I attended would sing a Christmas cantata each year. I remember having mixed feelings about singing in the choir. I found it a pain to go to practice (or any kind of practice for that matter!). What I didn’t appreciate back then, I do appreciate now. I remember the exhilarating sound of the choir. At one point, the choir loft had to be expanded to make room for additional participates and being in the midst of many voices blending together to make beautiful music is an experience I will never forget. I miss hearing harmonies swirl around me, pushing me up and down with every swell. Since then, most of the church services I have attended have focused on soloists. While they can certainly produce some spectacular music, I believe nothing can compare to the benefits of a choir with multiple harmonies praising God with as much beauty as we are able to muster. Music has the uncanny ability to transport us to another time and place, to turn our hearts to dwell on Jesus and what He has done for us.
“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10, 11 KJV). Tensions are high. Anxiety runs rampant. Many people are worried and distressed over the recent happenings in our county and the world. History is fraught with times of turmoil. Everywhere people are unhappy and suffering. Even long ago, our Savior was once a tiny little baby, helpless and in need of care from Joseph and Mary and persecuted by King Herod. Jesus could not have survived without their help but they were not alone. God directed them and protected His Son to ensure our future.
Even with divine guidance, Jesus’ family had to flee in the night to another country, and Joseph died before Jesus even began His ministry. Life isn’t always roses and rainbows. Now, more than ever before in my life, those words “tidings of great comfort and joy” carry special meaning. Jesus does not offer to answer all our questions or to prevent all our problems but He does proclaim salvation and the hope of a better future and that is the greatest “comfort and joy!” When He returns, He will bring an end to pain, suffering, injustice, and honestly… life as we know it! That Baby Boy, born over 2,000 years ago, is still Someone worth singing about, with hope, today.