There’s a lot of voices speaking
all at once, at high volume
as we listen for God’s voice
this Christmas.
Marketers trumpeting,
drawing our attention
to all that we lack,
claiming only they can save us.
Social media buzzing
with the world’s gossip,
the doings of the rich and famous
and the fall of the glamorous.
News announcers reporting
the bad news from everywhere,
every evil thing done under the sun
and the daily list of casualties.
Politicians posturing,
saying, “All is well!”
soothing us with their power,
their opponents yelling, “All is lost!”
Protesters chanting,
outrage in their voices,
as they call for justice,
accountability and change.
And then there are our own inner voices
reminding us insistently
of all we have failed to accomplish,
the tyranny of the to-do lists.
Words clatter all around us,
and we wonder if, this Christmas,
we will have ears to hear
the message of angels on any level.
This Christmas will teenage girls
drop their phones as they see light,
not from a screen, and respond,
“Here am I, a servant of the Lord”?
This Christmas, will men dream dreams,
that speak of things to come
and safe paths in dangerous times,
and will they wake and take them?
This Christmas will seniors,
who are long past childbearing,
hear prophesies in a personal way,
and have their lives changed by that revelation?
This Christmas, will farm workers
in the fields fall face down
when confronted with messengers
glowing with the glory of God?
Will they hear the message “Fear not,”
and the rock solid words,
“Look, I am bringing good news
of great joy for all people.”
This Christmas will we hear
the bold words of the angels
still ricocheting through space,
“A child is born this day, the Messiah, Christ the Lord.”
This Christmas will we leave our business
abandoned on the ground,
dropping everything for the chance
to worship for a moment on our knees?
This Christmas will we be amazed
at what God can do,
will we treasure these things,
these amazing things, in our hearts?
This Christmas will we go to our homes,
our bodies humming with the vibrations
of the harmonies of heaven
sung by ageless choirs?
Listen! They are still singing,
“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace,
good will to all people.”
God who brought to life
this story of salvation,
give us ears fine-tuned
to the message of hope.
Like a mother who can hear
her baby crying through any crowd,
give us all ears to hear
the voice calling to us,
the voice of Jesus this Christmas.
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.