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When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and the princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.
Howard Thurman
- Howard Thurman
God's Warrior
Our Gift to God
Our Gift to God
In a lowly stable
Far away from the crowd,
A tiny baby was born
That would make His Father proud.
Oh-h-h.....it wasn't just any baby
Born that night,
Under the Bethlehem star
That shone so bright.
No one knew
About the Greatest News on Earth,
Until an angel appeared to the shepherds
About His birth.
As the glory of the Lord shone round about them,
The shepherds were so afraid.
What was this amazing thing that was happening,
That only God could have made?
"Fear not," said the angel, "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. And this shall be a sign unto you, Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manager."
Suddenly, there appeared with the angel
A multitude of the heavenly host,
Praising God and rejoicing the birth
Of what the world needed the most.
As the wise men from the East followed the star
In search of the baby born from afar,
King Herod secretly made a plan
To kill all the male babies in the land.
Two years and younger
Was Herod's scheme,
But an angel appeared to Joseph
In a dream.
He said, "Take Mother and Child
Into Egypt you must flee,"
For Herod was killing boy babies
In search of Thee.
Now the wise men found Jesus in a house
And fell down to worship Him as the prophecies foretold,
Opening their treasures they presented Him gifts
Of frankincense, myrrh and gold.
Now Christmas is the time
God gave us the Greatest Gift of all,
His Son Jesus,
The Savior of the world since the fall.
But our gift to God
Is to receive His Son,
Who was with Him before
The world had even begun.
Fall on your knees
And bow down to the King,
He is the Only One
That has given you everything.
2003 BBB (Brenda B.B.)
God's Warrior
Christmas Eve Saint Francis and Saint Benedight
Blesse this house from wicked wight;
From the night-mare and the goblin,
That is hight good fellow Robin:
Keep it from all evil spirits,
Fairies, weezels, rats, and ferrets:
From curfew time To the next prime.
Thomas Cartwright
English Puritan clergyman, Cambridge
God's Warrior
Christmas List
Author Unknown
Snowflakes softly falling
Upon your window they play
Your blankets snug around you,
Into sleep you drift away.
I bend to gently kiss you,
when I see that on the floor
there's a letter, neatly written
I wonder who it's for.
I quietly unfold it
making sure you're still asleep,
It's a Christmas list for Santa
one my heart will always keep.
It started just as always
with the toys seen on TV,
A new watch for your father
and a winter coat for me.
But as my eyes read on
I could see that deep inside
there were many things you wished for
that your loving heart would hide.
You asked if you friend Molly
could have another Dad;
It seems her father hits her
and it makes you very sad.
Then you asked dear Santa
if the neighbors down the street
Could find a job, that he might have
some food, and clothes, and heat.
You saw a family on the news
whose house had blown away,
"Dear Santa, send them just one thing,
a place where they can stay."
"And Santa, those four cookies that
I left you for a treat,
Could you take them to the children
who have nothing else to eat."
"Do you know that little bear I have
the one I love so dear?"
"I'm leaving it for you to take
to Africa this year."
"And as you fly your reindeer
on this night of Jesus' birth,
Could your magic bring to everyone
goodwill and peace on earth."
"There's one last thing before you go,
so grateful I would be,
If you'd smile at Baby Jesus
in the manger by our tree."
I pulled the letter close to me
I felt it melt my heart.
Those tiny hands had written
what no other could impart.
"And a little child shall lead them,"
was whispered in my ear
As I watched you sleep on Christmas Eve
while Santa Claus was here.
God's Warrior
Let Us Keep Christmas
Whatever else be lost among the years,
Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing;
Whatever doubts assail us, or what fears,
Let us hold close one day, remembering
It's poignant meaning for the hearts of men.
Let us get back our childlike faith again.
- - - Grace Noll Crowell
God's Warrior
I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,
Just like the ones I used to know,
Where the tree tops glisten
And children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow.
- - - Irving Berlin
Have yourself a merry little Christmas, make the Yuletide gay.
- - - Ralph Blane "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
For Jesus Christ, our Saviour,
Was born upon this day,
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy!
For Jesus Christ, our Saviour,
Was born on Christmas Day.
- Dinah Maria Mulock Craik
"Christmas Bells"
I heard the bells, on Christmas Day,
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
- - - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine;
Love was born at Christmas;
Star and angels gave the sign.
- - - Christina Rossetti
'Twas Christmas broach'd the mightiest ale;
'Twas Christmas told the merriest tale;
A Christmas gambol oft could cheer
The poor man's heart through half the year.
- - - Sir Walter Scott "Marmion"
The time draws near the birth of Christ;
The moon is hid; the night is still;
The Christmas bells from hill to hill
Answer each other in the mist.
- - - Alfred, Lord Tennyson "In Memoriam"
Christmas is here:
Winds whistle shrill,
Icy and chill.
Little care we;
Little we fear
Weather without,
Sheltered about
The Mahogany Tree.
- - - William Makepeace Thackeray "The Mahogany Tree"
God's Warrior
God's Christmas Present
Let me tell you the story
Of the sweet Jesus Christ,
Who brought heaven to earth,
One cold winter night.
As planned by His Father,
A long time ago,
In the form of a babe,
He came down below.
His divine mission
Unknown at the time,
Was later revealed,
When God felt inclined.
The day the sweet Lord
Was nailed to that cross,
Was the day that God showed,
Mankind was not lost.
By the Son's grief and pain,
Man could be forgiven,
And God gave to man,
A vision of heaven.
But thick in his thinking,
And blind in his heart,
Man missed the Lord's meaning,
And remained in the dark.
Thus, each year at Christmas,
The tale is retold,
And man is reminded,
Of Jesus Christ's role.
Access to heaven,
God's gift to man,
God's Christmas Present,
The Start of His Plan!
Written by Virginia Ellis
God's Warrior
A Different Kind of Christmas Poem
The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.
The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... An American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."
"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."
Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."
God's Warrior
Santa Claus - A Child's Wonder
Author Unknown
"Daddy," she said, her eyes full of tears,
"Will you talk to me and quiet my fears?"
Those bad boys at school are spreading a lie
'Bout the impossibility of reindeer that fly.
There's no Santa Claus, they say with a grin,
There's not one now and never has been.
How can one man take all those toys?
To thousands of girls and boys?
ut I told them daddy, that they were not right,
That I would come home and find out tonight.
Mama said wait until you get home
Please tell me now that I was not wrong."
Her daddy looked at her questioning face
And puffed his pipe while his frantic mind raced.
He had put this thing off as long as he could,
He had to think fast and it better be good.
Whispering a prayer, he began with a smile,
"Well climb on my lap, dear, let's talk a while."
"Remember at church how we learned to pray,
Asking God to take care of us each day?
And you know how we say grace before each meal?
To this same God whom we know to be real
Though we never see Him, we know He is there
Watching his children with such loving care."
"God started Christmas a long time ago
When He gave us His son to love and to know.
A spirit of giving came with that birth,
And God's generosity filled the whole earth.
Man had to name this spirit of giving
Just as He names all things that are living."
"The name Santa Claus came to someone's mind
Probably the best name of any to find
There is, you can see, and I think it quite clear,
Truly a Santa who visits each year.
Spirits like God, whom we never see
He enters the hearts of your mother and me."
Each year at Christmas for one special night
We become him and make everything right.
But the REAL spirit of Christmas is in you and in me,
And I hope you are old enough now to see
That as we believe and continue to give,
Our friend Santa Claus will continue to live."
God's Warrior
Rather than ruining the good times, just remember:
The Month after Christmas
Twas the month after Christmas all through the house
Nothing would fit me, not even a blouse.
The cookies I'd nibbled, the eggnog I'd taste
At the holiday parties had gone to my waist.
When I got on the scales there arose such a number!
When I walked to the store (less a walk than a lumber).
I'd remember the marvelous meals I'd prepared;
The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared,
The wine and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese
And the way I'd never said, "No thank you, please."
As I dressed myself in my husband's old shirt
And prepared once again to do battle with dirt--
I said to myself, as I only can
"You can't spend a winter disguised as a man!"
So -- away with the last of the sour cream dip,
Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip
Every last bit of food that I like must be banished
Till all the additional ounces have vanished.
I won't have a cookie -- not even a lick.
I'll only chew on a long celery stick.
I won't have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie,
I'll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.
I'm hungry, I'm lonesome, and life is a bore-
But isn't that what January is for?
Unable to giggle, no longer a riot.
Happy New Year to all and to all a good diet!
God's Warrior
You Can't Buy Me Christmas
Grace Chiang
'Twas the night before Christmas,
and all through the mall,
Not a creature was idle, shoppers least of all;
The merchandise was placed
in the windows with care,
In hopes that great sale shoppers
soon would be there.
The parents were hoping to keep out of the red,
While visions of tax returns danced in their heads;
And Ma in her overcoat and Pa in his fleece,
Headed to the mall despite a tight winter squeeze.
When out from the women's wear, there arose such a clatter,
We looked up from our wares to see what was the matter.
Away to the sales rack we flew like a flash, Tore off the clothing and paid it with cash.
The moms with kids were all in tow,
The stores were all aglow,
When all at once we saw him appear,
A fat old man with a great white beard!
With all the bustle so lively and quick,
We knew in a moment it was just a trick.
Ten bucks for a photo, on the lap of a man? Better to catch bargains and shop while we can!
"Now Visa! now Mastercard! and American Express!
On Discover, on bank cards, on personal checks!
To the front of the line, to the front of the store!
I want it all! And I want it more!"
As we marched to the car with bags in our hands,
We were startled to see a hungry old man.
As he watched us walk past, down his face rolled a tear.
His clothes were dull rags, and no one drew near.
And suddenly, we felt so ashamed.
The fake glow from the stores had already waned.
For here was someone who reminded us so dear,
Of One who had come to end all our fear.
And lo! Above the mounting spectacle of greed,
Shone a bright star for all to take heed;
That Christmas is more than material things,
It is JESUS who we celebrate, and the joy that He brings.
God's Warrior
The Night Before Christmas
Another Version......
'Twas the night before Christmas,
and all through the mall,
Not a creature was idle,
shoppers least of all;
The merchandise was placed
in the windows with care,
In hopes that great sale shoppers
soon would be there.
The parents were hoping to keep out of the red,
While visions of tax returns danced in their heads;
And Ma in her overcoat and Pa in his fleece,
Headed to the mall despite a tight winter squeeze.
When out from the women's wear, there arose such a clatter,
We looked up from our wares to see what was the matter.
Away to the sales rack we flew like a flash, Tore off the clothing and paid it with cash.
The moms with kids were all in tow,
The stores were all aglow,
When all at once he suddenly appeared,
A fat old man with a great white beard!
With all the bustle so lively and quick,
We knew in a moment it was just a trick.
Ten bucks for a photo, on the lap of a man?
Better to catch bargains and shop while we can!
"Now Visa! now Mastercard! and American Express!
On Discover, on bank cards, on personal checks!
To the front of the line, to the front of the store!
I want it all! And I want it more!"
As we marched to the car with bags in our hands,
We were startled to see a hungry old man.
As he watched us walk past, down his face rolled a tear.
His clothes were dull rags, and no one drew near.
And suddenly, we felt so ashamed.
The fake glow from the stores had already waned.
For here was someone who reminded us so dear,
Of One who had come to end all our fear.
And lo! Above the mounting spectacle of greed,
Shone a bright star for all to take heed;
That Christmas is more than material things,
It is JESUS who we celebrate, and the joy that He brings.
God's Warrior
The Ballad of Befana
Phyllis McGinley
Befana the Housewife, scrubbing her pane,
Saw three old sages ride down the lane,
Saw three gray travelers pass her door-
Gaspar, Balthazar, Melchior.
"Where journey you, sirs?" she asked of them.
Balthazar answered, "To Bethlehem,
For we have news of a marvelous thing
Born in a stable is Christ the King."
"Give Him my welcome!"
Then Gaspar smiled,
"Come with us, mistress, to greet the Child."
"Oh, happily, happily would I fare,
Were my dusting through and I'd polished the stair."
Old Melchior leaned on his saddle horn.
"Then send but a gift to the small Newborn."
"Oh, gladly, gladly I'd send Him one,
Were the hearthstone swept and my weaving done.
As soon as ever I've baked my bread,
I'll fetch Him a pillow for His head.
And a coverlet too," Befana said.
"When the rooms are aired and the linen dry,
I'll look at the Babe."
But the Three rode by.
She worked for a day and a night and a day,
Then, gifts in her hands, took up her way.
But she never could find
where the Christ Child lay.
And still she wanders at Christmastide,
Houseless, whose house was all her pride,
Whose heart was tardy, whose gifts were late,
Wanders, and knocks at every gate,
Crying, "Good people, the bells begin!
Put off your toiling and let love in!"
God's Warrior
The Night Before Christmas:
by Clement Clarke Moore
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
God's Warrior
The Last Little Christmas Tree
The Last Little Christmas Tree
Author unknown
I saw a truck of Christmas trees
And each one had a tale,
The driver stood them in a row
And put them up for sale.
He strung some twinkly lights
And hung a sign up with a nail;
"FRESH CHRISTMAS TREES"
It said in red
"FRESH CHRISTMAS TREES FOR SALE."
He poured himself hot cocoa
In a steaming thermos cup,
And snowflakes started falling
As a family car pulled up.
A mom, a dad, and one small boy
Who looked no more than three
Jumped out and started searching
For the perfect Christmas tree.
The boy marched up and down the rows,
His nose high in the air;
"It smells like Christmas, mom!
"It smells like Christmas everywhere!"
"Let's get the biggest tree we can!
"A tree that's ten miles high!
"A tree to go right through our roof!
"A tree to touch the sky!"
"A tree SO big
"That Santa Claus
"Will stop and stare and say,
"'Now, THAT'S the finest Christmas tree
"'I've seen this Christmas Day!'"
It seemed they looked at every tree
At least three million times;
Dad shook them, pinched them, turned them 'round
To find the perfect pine.
"I've found it, mom!
"The Christmas tree I like the best of all!
"It's got a little bare spot,
"But we'll turn that to the wall!"
"We'll put great-grandma's angel
"On top the highest bough!
"Oh, can we buy it?
"Please, mom, PLEASE?!
"Oh, can we buy it NOW?"
"How 'bout some nice hot cocoa?"
Asked the man who owned the lot.
He twisted off the thermos top,
"Now, THIS will hit the spot!"
He poured the steaming chocolate
In three tiny paper cups.
They toasted,
"Here's to Christmas!"
And they drank the cocoa up.
"Is this your choice?"
The tree man asked,
"This pine's the best one here!"
The boy seemed sad---
"My daddy says
"The price is just too dear."
"Then, Merry Christmas!"
Said the man, who wrapped the tree in twine,
"It's yours for just one promise
"You must keep at Christmas time!"
"On Christmas Eve at bedtime
"As you fold your hands to pray,
"Promise in your heart
"To keep the joy of Christmas Day!"
"Now hurry home!
This freezy wind
"Is turning your cheeks pink!
"And ask your dad
"To trim that trunk and give that tree a drink!"
And so it went on
All that blustery eve
As the tree man gave
Tree upon tree upon tree
To every last person
Who came to the lot---
Who toasted with cocoa
In small paper cups,
Who promised the promise
Of joy in their hearts---
And singing out carols,
Drove off in the dark.
And when it was over
One tree stood alone;
But no one was left there
To give it a home.
The tree man put on his
Red parka and hood
And dragged the last Christmas tree
Out to the woods.
He left the pine right by a stream
In the cold,
So the wood's homeless creatures
Could make it their home.
He smiled as he brushed off
Some snow from his beard,
When out of the thicket
A reindeer appeared.
He scratched that huge reindeer
On top his huge head---
"It looks like we've
"Started up Christmas again!"
"There are miles more to travel,
"And much more to do!
"Let's go home, my friend,
"And get started anew!"
He looked to the sky
And heard jingle bells sound---
And then,
In a twinkling,
That tree man was gone!
God's Warrior
A Child's Prayer
Snowflakes softly falling
Upon you window pane.
Your blankets snug around you,
Into sleep you drift away.
I bend to gently kiss you,
When I see that on the floor
There's a letter, neatly written,
I wonder who it's for.
I quietly unfold it
Making sure you're still asleep,
It's a Christmas list for Santa,
One my heart will always keep.
It started just as always
With the toys seen on TV.
A new watch for your father
And a winter coat for me.
But as my eyes read on
I could see that deep inside,
There were many things you wished for
That your loving heart would hide.
You asked if your friend Molly
could have another dad;
It seems her father hits her
And it makes you very sad.
Then you asked "Dear Santa,
If the neighbor down the street
Could find a job, that he might have
Some food and clothes, and heat."
You saw a family on the news
Whose house had blown away:
"Dear Santa, send them just one thing,
A place where they can stay."
"And Santa, those four cookies
That I have left you for a treat,
Could you take them to the children
Who have nothing else to eat?"
"Do you know that little boat I have -
The one I love so dear?
I'm leaving it for you to take
To Africa this year."
"And as you fly your reindeer
On this night of Jesus' birth,
Could your magic bring to everyone
Goodwill and peace on earth?"
"There's one last thing before you go
So grateful I would be
If you'd smile at Baby Jesus
In the manger by our tree."
Author Unknown
God's Warrior
A Child's Wonder
Author unknown
"Daddy," she said, her eyes full of tears, "will you
talk to me and quiet my fears?" Those bad boys at
school are spreading a lie 'bout the impossibility of
reindeer that fly. There's no Santa Claus, they say
with a grin, there's not one now and never has been.
How can one man take all those toys to thousands of
girls and boys? But I told them, Daddy, that they were
not right, that I would come home and find out
tonight. Mama said wait until you get home. Please
tell me now that I was not wrong."
Her daddy looked at her questioning face and puffed
his pipe while his frantic mind raced. He had put
this thing off as long as he could, he had to think
fast and it better be good. Whispering a prayer, he
began with a smile, "Well climb on my lap, dear, let's
talk a while."
"Remember at church how we learned to pray, asking
God to take care of us each day? And you know how
we say grace before each meal? To this same God
whom we know to be real. Though we never see Him,
we know He is there
watching his children with such loving care."
"God started Christmas a long time ago when He gave
us His son to love and to know. A spirit of giving came
with that birth, and God's generosity filled the
whole earth. Man had to name this spirit of giving
just as He names all things that are living."
"The name Santa Claus came to someone's mind
probably the best name of any to find. There is, you
can see, and I think it quite clear, truly a Santa who
visits each year. A spirit like God, whom we never see
he enters the hearts of your mother and me."
Each year at Christmas for one special night we
become him and make everything right. But the REAL
spirit of Christmas is in you and in me, and I hope you
are old enough now to see that as we believe and
continue to give, our friend Santa Claus will continue to live.
God's Warrior
Music on Christmas Morning
Anne Bronte (1820-1849)
Music I love--but never strain
Could kindle raptures so divine,
So grief assuage, so conquer pain,
And rouse this pensive heart of mine--
As that we hear on Christmas morn,
Upon the wintry breezes borne.
Though Darkness still her empire keep,
And hours must pass, ere morning break;
From troubled dreams, or slumbers deep,
That music KINDLY bids us wake:
It calls us, with an angel's voice,
To wake, and worship, and rejoice;
To greet with joy the glorious morn,
Which angels welcomed long ago,
When our redeeming Lord was born,
To bring the light of Heaven below;
The Powers of Darkness to dispel,
And rescue Earth from Death and Hell.
While listening to that sacred strain,
My raptured spirit soars on high;
I seem to hear those songs again
Resounding through the open sky,
That kindled such divine delight,
In those who watched their flocks by night.
With them I celebrate His birth--
Glory to God, in highest Heaven,
Good-will to men, and peace on earth,
To us a Saviour-king is given;
Our God is come to claim His own,
And Satan's power is overthrown!
A sinless God, for sinful men,
Descends to suffer and to bleed;
Hell MUST renounce its empire then;
The price is paid, the world is freed,
And Satan's self must now confess
That Christ has earned a RIGHT to bless:
Now holy Peace may smile from heaven,
And heavenly Truth from earth shall spring:
The captive's galling bonds are riven,
For our Redeemer is our king;
And He that gave his blood for men
Will lead us home to God again.
God's Warrior
A Christmas Carol
G.K.Chesterton
The Christ-child lay on Mary's lap,
His hair was like a light.
(O weary, weary were the world,
But here is all aright.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary's breast
His hair was like a star.
(O stern and cunning are the kings,
But here the true hearts are.)
The Christ-child lay on Mary's heart,
His hair was like a fire.
(O weary, weary is the world,
But here the world's desire.)
The Christ-child stood on Mary's knee,
His hair was like a crown,
And all the flowers looked up at Him,
And all the stars looked down
God's Warrior
A Christmas Carol
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
The shepherds went their hasty way,
And found the lowly stable-shed
Where the Virgin-Mother lay:
And now they checked their eager tread,
For to the Babe, that at her bosom clung,
A Mother's song the Virgin-Mother sung.
They told her how a glorious light,
Streaming from a heavenly throng.
Around them shone, suspending night!
While sweeter than a mother's song,
Blest Angels heralded the Savior's birth,
Glory to God on high! and Peace on Earth.
She listened to the tale divine,
And closer still the Babe she pressed:
And while she cried, the Babe is mine!
The milk rushed faster to her breast:
Joy rose within her, like a summer's morn;
Peace, Peace on Earth! the Prince of Peace is born.
Thou Mother of the Prince of Peace,
Poor, simple, and of low estate!
That strife should vanish, battle cease,
O why should this thy soul elate?
Sweet Music's loudest note, the Poet's story,
Didst thou ne'er love to hear of fame and glory?
And is not War a youthful king,
A stately Hero clad in mail?
Beneath his footsteps laurels spring;
Him Earth's majestic monarchs hail
Their friends, their playmate! and his bold bright eye
Compels the maiden's love-confessing sigh.
Tell this in some more courtly scene,
To maids and youths in robes of state!
I am a woman poor and mean,
And wherefore is my soul elate.
War is a ruffian, all with guilt defiled,
That from the aged father's tears his child!
A murderous fiend, by fiends adored,
He kills the sire and starves the son;
The husband kills, and from her board
Steals all his widow's toil had won;
Plunders God's world of beauty; rends away
All safety from the night, all comfort from the day.
Then wisely is my soul elate,
That strife should vanish, battle cease:
I'm poor and of low estate,
The Mother of the Prince of Peace.
Joy rises in me, like a summer's morn:
Peace, Peace on Earth! The Prince of Peace is born!
God's Warrior
The Three Kings
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Three Kings came riding from far away,
Melchior and Gaspar and Baltasar;
Three Wise Men out of the East were they,
And they travelled by night and they slept by day,
For their guide was a beautiful, wonderful star.
The star was so beautiful, large and clear,
That all the other stars of the sky
Became a white mist in the atmosphere,
And by this they knew that the coming was near
Of the Prince foretold in the prophecy.
Three caskets they bore on their saddle-bows,
Three caskets of gold with golden keys;
Their robes were of crimson silk with rows
Of bells and pomegranates and furbelows,
Their turbans like blossoming almond-trees.
And so the Three Kings rode into the West,
Through the dusk of the night, over hill and dell,
And sometimes they nodded with beard on breast,
And sometimes talked, as they paused to rest,
With the people they met at some wayside well.
"Of the child that is born," said Baltasar,
"Good people, I pray you, tell us the news;
For we in the East have seen his star,
And have ridden fast, and have ridden far,
To find and worship the King of the Jews."
And the people answered, "You ask in vain;
We know of no King but Herod the Great!"
They thought the Wise Men were men insane,
As they spurred their horses across the plain,
Like riders in haste, who cannot wait.
And when they came to Jerusalem,
Herod the Great, who had heard this thing,
Sent for the Wise Men and questioned them;
And said, "Go down unto Bethlehem,
And bring me tidings of this new king."
So they rode away; and the star stood still,
The only one in the grey of morn;
Yes, it stopped --it stood still of its own free will,
Right over Bethlehem on the hill,
The city of David, where Christ was born.
And the Three Kings rode through the gate and the guard,
Through the silent street, till their horses turned
And neighed as they entered the great inn-yard;
But the windows were closed, and the doors were barred,
And only a light in the stable burned.
And cradled there in the scented hay,
In the air made sweet by the breath of kine,
The little child in the manger lay,
The child, that would be king one day
Of a kingdom not human, but divine.
His mother Mary of Nazareth
Sat watching beside his place of rest,
Watching the even flow of his breath,
For the joy of life and the terror of death
Were mingled together in her breast.
They laid their offerings at his feet:
The gold was their tribute to a King,
The frankincense, with its odor sweet,
Was for the Priest, the Paraclete,
The myrrh for the body's burying.
And the mother wondered and bowed her head,
And sat as still as a statue of stone,
Her heart was troubled yet comforted,
Remembering what the Angel had said
Of an endless reign and of David's throne.
Then the Kings rode out of the city gate,
With a clatter of hoofs in proud array;
But they went not back to Herod the Great,
For they knew his malice and feared his hate,
And returned to their homes by another way.
God's Warrior
The Bells
Edgar Allan Poe
Hear the sledges with the bells--- Silver Bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle,tinkle,tinkle, In the icy air of night!
While the stars that over sprinkle
All the heavens seem to twinkle
With a crystalline delight;
Keeping time, time, time,
In a sort of Runic rhyme,
To the tintinnabulation that so musically wells
From the bells, bells, bells, bells,Bells, bells, bells,---
From the jingling and tinkling of the bells.
God's Warrior
Journey of the Magi
T.S. Eliot
"A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter."
And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.
There were times we regretted
The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces,
And the silken girls bringing sherbet.
Then the camel men cursing and grumbling
And running away, and wanting their liquor and women,
And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters,
And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly
And the villages dirty and charging high prices:
A hard time we had of it.
At the end we preferred to travel all night,
Sleeping in snatches,
With the voices singing in our ears, saying
That this was all folly.
Then at dawn we came down to a temperate valley,
Wet, below the snow line, smelling of vegetation,
With a running stream and a water-mill beating the darkness,
And three trees on the low sky.
And an old white horse galloped away in the meadow.
Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel,
Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver,
And feet kicking the empty wine-skins.
But there was no information, and so we continued
And arrived at evening, not a moment too soon
Finding the place; it was (you may say) satisfactory.
All this was a long time ago, I remember,
And I would do it again, but set down
This set down
This: were we led all that way for
Birth or Death? There was a Birth, certainly,
We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death,
But had thought they were different; this Birth was
Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death.
We returned to our places, these Kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.
God's Warrior
Sweetness and Joy
Paul A. Murphy
The candy cane, a Christmas treat,
So good to see, so good to eat
Hidden in among the trees,
Red and white, made to please;
Shining in the twinkling light,
Making the green needles bright.
Taste of sweetness, taste of joy;
Made for every girl and boy!
Shaped to show a shepherd's staff,
Flavored for tasty laugh;
On this Christmas Day of days,
Say a sweeter prayer of praise.
Click to see full size image
God's Warrior
A Christmas Prayer
Helen Steiner Rice
Bless us, Lord, this Christmas
With quietness of mind;
Teach us to be patient
And always to be kind;
Give us reassurance
When everything goes wrong,
So our faith remains unfaltering,
Our hope and courage strong-
And show us that in quietness
We can feel your presence near,
Filling us with joy and peace
All seasons of the year.
