O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, by Selah with scenes from The Nativity Story

The Nativity Story (used for this video - not the best visual quality) gives us the context of a Jewish nation in the midst of oppression. Historians tell us the following:
Hebrew identity was maintained through a deep spiritual conviction that Yahweh had chosen them to play a unique role in the history of the world. In particular, the Jewish people had come to expect a Messiah who, they believed, would enable them to fulfill this divine mission. There were differing understandings of the mission and role of the Messiah ranging from the establishment of a Jewish political kingdom here on earth to the idea of a heavenly kingdom at the end of the world.

Religion and politics were deeply intertwined in Hebrew faith and self-understanding. By the time of Jesus' birth, the Romans had established a two-tiered system of government consisting of Roman overseers and Jewish leaders who exercised control in the name of Rome. This was the system of power in which the family of Herod the Great grew to prominence.

Although half-Jews, the Herodian family was detested by the Jewish people for its tyrannical rule and also because of its key role in selling out the Jewish heritage to a foreign power. One of Herod's sons, Archelaus, was so brutal in his exercise of power in Jerusalem, that Rome replaced him with one of its own governors, Pontius Pilate, who was to play a significant role in the crucifixion of Jesus.

Another of the sons, Herod Antipas, was responsible for the beheading of John the Baptist. It was the same Antipas who is accredited with the mocking of Jesus at his pre-crucifixion trial.

Lyrics:

Oh come, O come, Emmanuel

And ransom captive Israel

That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appear

Rejoice, Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, Oh Israel!

Oh come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer
Thy people with Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight

Rejoice, Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, Oh Israel!

Oh come, Thou rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave

Rejoice, Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, Oh Israel!
Rejoice, Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, Oh Israel!

Supporting Scriptures:
4 Old Testament prophesies-

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners." Isaiah 61:1

"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14

"A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord—...
but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. " Isaiah 11:1-2, 4 (and all of Isaiah 11)

"And thou, child (speaking of John the Baptist, forerunner of Jesus), shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us,
To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." Luke 1: 76-79

New Testament fulfillment-
"All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.' " Matthew 1:23

“And he (Jesus) came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began said to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4: 16-21

You Are My Hiding Place, by Selah

The Ten Boom home was a refuge for Jews and the Dutch underground in Holland during WWII. Corrie credited her family's strong Christian faith as the motivation for their rescue efforts.
Their lives were torn apart when her family was arrested and taken to a concentration camp. Her father died, her sister Betsie died, and she had to look to the Lord for her source of strength.

There are 3 reasons to hide:
1. It is the right thing to run and hide from rough elements of this world. I brought my red geranium in from the weather so it wouldn't freeze this winter. I placed it in a south-facing window, and it is blooming! Too often, though, we hide in the wrong places - sleep, busyness, shopping, eating...God wants us to hide in Him.

2. As we read the writings of Christians gone before us, we see that they took their greatest fears, circumstances, and thoughts and hid them in Christ. They developed an 'inner life' in Him. So you are really not living in "the financial meltdown" or a "lonely life of singleness", but you are in Christ Jesus. Acts 17: 28 says: "For in him we live, and move, and have our being..."

3. Taking refuge in Him, we take on an aura of peace and contentment that makes the world wonder why. Corrie ten Boom, after living through the horrors of Ravensbruck, a concentration camp built for women in 1939, said, "If you look at the world, you'll be distressed. If you look within, you'll be depressed. If you look at God you'll be at rest." God is our only source of hope!

Lyrics:
You are my hiding place
You always fill my heart
With songs of deliverance
Whenever I am afraid

I will trust in You
I will trust in You

Let the weak say I am strong
In the strength of the Lord

You are my hiding place

You always fill my heart

With songs of deliverance
Whenever I am afraid

I will trust in You
I will trust in You

Let the weak say I am strong

In the strength of the Lord

I will trust in You

Supporting Scriptures:

My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my defense; I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
Trust in Him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.

Psalm 62: 6-8

"For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:10

You Raise Me Up, Selah

In the Bible, there are many examples of the Lord raising up his people: Job, Naomi, Joseph, Gideon, David, Daniel, Esther, Mary, Elizabeth, Moses, the disciples, and the prophets. That was long ago, but God is still at work with His people.

male rufous-sided towhee

Today, Almighty God is still lifting us up as a parent picks up a fallen child. I can think of specific instances when He has spoken through circumstances to bolster up my broken heart. A week after my husband and I had lost one of our twins before birth, to console myself, I was carefully spending time out in the yard weeding in the mulch. I spied a little bird, a rufous-sided towhee, very close to my side, working the mulch with this back and forth shuffle they have when hunting bugs. It seemed oblivious to my presence. It stayed close; it was keeping me company. My moving did not scare it away. I had been praying and giving a sacrifice of praise in tears as I worked, and for two days there, off and on, this little bird came to work the mulch by my side when I came out. Just at the time I felt the presence of the Lord sustaining me, encouraging me, I could find the industrious bird no more. I marveled at the kindness of the Creator to send something that meant so much to me as that little bird.

"As a father has compassion on his children,

so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;

for he knows how we are formed,

he remembers that we are dust." Psalm 103: 13-14

Lyrics:
When I am down and oh, my soul so weary
When troubles come and my heart burdened be
Then I am still and wait here in the silence
Until You come and sit awhile with me

You raise me up so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
I am strong when I am on Your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be

You raise me up so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
I am strong when I am on Your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be

There is no life, no life without its hunger
Each restless heart beats so imperfectly
But when You come and I am filled with wonder
Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity

You raise me up so I can stand on mountains
(You raise me up, I can stand on mountains)
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
(Walk on stormy seas)

And I am strong when I am on Your shoulders
Oh, you raise me up to more than I can be
You raise me up to more than I can be

Supporting Scripture:
“But if I go to the east, he is not there;

if I go to the west, I do not find him.

When he is at work in the north, I do not see him;

when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.

But he knows the way that I take;

when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

My feet have closely followed his steps;

I have kept to his way without turning aside.

I have not departed from the commands of his lips;

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:8-12

"And David knew that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom " for the sake of his people Israel." 2 Samuel 5:12

"So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. Then he went to her, and the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.”Ruth 4:14-15

For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust." Psalm 103:14

"Praise the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits—

who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion,

who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s" Psalm 103: 2-5

Before the Throne of God Above, Selah

God Almighty's throne is so much more than this!

Dr.Rudi Swanepoel writes, (this is so wonderful)

"A throne is the emblem of authority. From the throne official Kingdom business is ratified, decrees are made and judgments pronounced. Official audience with the King seated on the throne represents the highest form of representation available. In the presence of God there are times of tremendous intimacy and fellowship but then there are also moments to appear officially before the throne. Your moments before the throne of God are reserved for purpose, destiny, worship and judgments.
Unlike an earthly throne room though, God’s throne is mobile. It appears wherever God manifests His presence. God said in Isa. 66:1 “Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool.” God’s Throne is mobile! It is carried by the cherubim! The throne is not standing on the ground! (See Ezek. 1:25-26) The throne is part of the procession of Heaven. When the Glory of God enters a room tremendous things happen. In the unseen realm there is angelic activity, an open heaven, a manifestation of the throne of God and the awesome presence of God. There is fire, heaven’s altar, light, worship happening, and more. In Heb. 4:16 we are encouraged to draw near to the throne of grace with boldness that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in good time for every need! How do we draw near? One great way is to pursue the presence of God in worship. He comes seated on the throne, carried by the angels into your circumstance and life. What a tremendous thought!"

Our family loves the group Selah. Their music (much of it) is a little taste of heaven. I will be posting many more by them in the future.

This is actually an old hymn; the words were written in 1863 by Charitie Bancroft to the tune of Sweet Hour of Prayer (tune by William Bradbury). Below is a link to cyberhymnal with a rendition of the original hymn: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/b/e/beforetg.htm.

Lyrics:

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea.
A great high Priest whose Name is Love
Who ever lives and pleads for me.

My name is graven on His hands,
My name is written on His heart.
I know that while in Heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin.

Because the sinless Savior died
My sinful soul is counted free.
For God the just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me.

Behold Him there the risen Lamb,
My perfect spotless righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The King of glory and of grace,

One in Himself I cannot die.
My soul is purchased by His blood,
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ my Savior and my God!

Supporting Scriptures:

See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. Isaiah 49:16

"I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed." Malachi 3:6

The entire chapter of Psalm 51 by King David illustrates the amazing power of God’s mercy as He responds to our plea for renewal and cleansing from our sin.

"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time" Revelation 12: 10-12

"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes (pleads) for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will" Romans 8: 26-27

"Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Hebrews 4: 14-16