Saturday, December 2, 2017

White Noise

White Noise: a constant background noise; especially: one that drowns out other sounds

It's no secret that the world we live in, whether our actual three-dimensional lives that involve true human interaction, or our virtual lives that are lived on a screen, has a lot of white noise. We become immune to the posts about politics, celebrity mishaps, and verbal tirades simply because they exist so frequently we scroll right past them.

If we're honest with ourselves, we can see the same thing happen with our faith. We hear the same Scriptures quoted, we hear the same sermons preached, and we read the same passages in our Bible desperate for something fresh to leap off the page, but it's become so familiar, we assume nothing new is possible or left.

Last night we attended a Christmas concert our daughter was participating in with her choral group at school. We went to the same concert last year and it was nice but not overly amazing. Not that the quality of the performance was lacking, but my heart wasn't fully engaged. I mean, how many times have we heard the Christmas songs we've been singing since childhood? To be honest, they were my white noise of December.

But something last night was very different. I don't know if it's because I've recently read the Gospels or God has done something huge in my heart that I wasn't fully aware of it, but I could not stop smiling and just listening with my eyes closed thinking about the words to these songs. They weren't just catchy familiar tunes anymore, they were harmonious creations announcing the birth of the Savior. My Savior. Your Savior. It was incredible.

This weekend at church the music will change and we'll be singing songs we've most likely heard since birth and memorized since the age of three. But instead of just following along with the lyrics on the screen or in the hymnal, let's intentionally read them, digest them, ponder them. Let's remember that they are rooted in the truth of Scripture and that they aren't just pleasant to our ears but healing to our hearts and souls. Let's start this first Sunday of Advent with great intention to anticipate the birth of Christ with eyes that see the wondrous miracle that is His presence here with us.



Looking for some new Christmas Songs? Here's my Christmas playlist:

2. O Come, O Come Emmanuel, Josh Wilson
5. I Believe, Natalie Grant
6. O Praise The Name, Hillsong Worship
7. Noel, Chris Tomlin featuring Lauren Daigle (I ruined car speakers with this one)
8. Adore, Chris Tomlin


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