Our hearts sing with joy at the birth of Jesus

“Suddenly, a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men in whom his favor rests.”#8212; Luke 2:13-14 (NIV)

One of the things I love most about Christmas is the carols. Through them, the amazing story of God#146;s love and grace surrounding the birth of his son is described.

Due to my love for the carols, oftentimes, throughout my life, I have rejoiced with singing in the church choir at Christmas.

One year in particular I found myself surrounded by angels big and small. Some were wee ones from our church nursery; others were the members of the junior choir. We gathered together each week, from mid-October until performance Sunday, to blend our voices in song as we practiced the lyrics, #147;Glory to God in the highest.#148;

The day of the big performance arrived. The sweet, heavenly choir dressed in white sheets and adorning angel wings lined up single file, just as we had practiced.

The large angels filed out onto the sanctuary platform, and formed a semicircle in the back row. Next, the littlest angels presented themselves. As the last one fell in line, we stood in silence waiting for the music to cue us to sing.

We were shaking so hard, I wouldn#146;t doubt if our cardboard wings were flapping from the vibration.

Suddenly, the sound of music resonated from the church organ. But the only sound that rang from the heavenly choir was silence. Once again, the organ gave the cue, but the choir of angels stood tongue-tied.

Then an encouraging word came from the mouth of babes. One of the littlest angels took the lead, and in a hearty voice commanded the choir, #147;Come on, guys, let#146;s sing!#148;

The next organ chord brought forth a heavenly voice of angels that stopped the audience#146;s roar of laughter dead in their tracks.

The little angel had the same sentiment in her heart as the angels who sang on high the first Christmas morning. They were tongue-tied but understood that they had a lot to sing about.

Heaven and earth were joined together that day in the fulfillment of God#146;s plan, as our Savior came to save us from our sin.

This Christmas season, don#146;t allow the hustle and bustle to tongue-tie your words of praise and adoration. Take some time to rejoice with the angels and sing.

Ÿ Annettee Budzban is a Christian speaker, author, life coach and nurse. She can be contacted at annetteebudzban@aol.com.