A Weary World Rejoices
It’s the first day of Advent and my heart feels weary.
The simple joys of the Christmas season feel heavy in the midst of grief. What used to be my favorite time of year now has undercurrents of dread. The cards, carols, and family gatherings are all little reminders of what was and what can no longer be.
To an outsider, Christmas in my home might not look very different from years past. We set up the same nativity scene and hung the same stockings. Tomorrow we will build the same artificial tree that has dropped its needles on the same rug for years. We will wrap it with the very same strands of gold and silver tinsel that we have used for nearly a decade.
However, for us on the inside, every part of Christmas feels different. It is no longer my husband who carefully arranges the nativity each year - that tradition has been passed on to our son. And while Greg’s stocking still hangs above our sofa, it will remain empty on Christmas morning. This is our second year of decorating without him and our third of celebrating Christmas without him. He died just 6 days - and 60 years - too soon.
My home may look festive after an evening of decorating but my heart is weary.
On a night like this, I am tempted to conclude that Christmas is not for me. After all, it seems like Christmas is for the joyful. Surely it’s for the ones whose hearts, arms, and homes are full. Who else can be jolly but those who have no lack? Christmas is for those whose traditions make them happy, not sad, for those who will fill every stocking and who can decorate their tree without tears.
Yet all through the night, a phrase has been running through my head: “The weary world rejoices”. Christmas is for the weary.
The classic Christmas hymn, O Holy Night, composed in 1843, says the following:
O holy night, the stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth;
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
'Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn;
Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices!
O night divine! O night when Christ was born.
O night, O holy night, O night divine.
This hymn reminds us of what Christmas is all about: Jesus came to bring hope to a weary world.
He came to assure us of a future hope that nothing in this life can steal from us. We read this hope in Revelation 21:3-4
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Do you feel the sting of death? Jesus came and will come again to destroy it forever.
Do you cry as you decorate your home? Jesus came and will come again to wipe away every tear from your eyes.
Have you experienced the gut-wrenching depths of grief? Jesus came and will come again so that one day grief will be no more.
Weary friend, Christmas is for you.
You who have lost your husband, Christmas is for you.
You who must raise your kids without their father, Christmas is for you.
You who struggle to bring joy to your home in the midst of so much loss and pain, Christmas is for you.
We don’t have to get rid of our weariness to rejoice this Christmas. Our weariness is the very thing that may lead us into a deeper, truer, more certain joy.
In Christ,
