Tag: All is Well

All is Well

Published on by noteworthymommyLeave a comment

If December had a soundtrack, mine would be set at allegro. Advent always arrives gently on the church calendar, but in real life it tends to come with a very full to do list and this year was no exception.

The days were packed with preschool teaching, doing my best to make the Advent season meaningful and memorable for my students. There were Christmas concerts to play, rehearsals to attend, and that familiar pressure to be present and prepared everywhere at once. At home, every ornament needed to be placed just so because somehow that feels like part of honoring the season. Gifts were purchased, cards were written and mailed, and my list expanded as it always does, this year with the added blessing of including the pastors, staff, and students of Bethlehem Lutheran.

Then there was real life. A sick child. A sick husband. Both arriving right on cue the week before Christmas.

Still, the calendar marched on. I hosted my annual Bunco Babes Christmas Party, put together gift bags for the Zion school and church staff, and prepared to host Christmas dinner for our parents. And that’s only the highlight reel… the list truly goes on and on. I know most of you reading this are nodding along. You get it. Advent can be holy and exhausting.

In the midst of all that doing, I found myself wondering: Is this how Jesus wants us to celebrate His birthday? With stress? With rushing? With checking boxes?

I don’t think so.

So this year, even as I did get it all done (with a little stress, if I’m being honest), I prayed intentionally for the Advent gifts of peace and joy. And something shifted. I asked for help. I gave myself grace when things weren’t done exactly as they always are. I let go of the idea that everything had to be perfect. And in doing so, some of that familiar holiday overwhelm loosened its grip and I had one of the busiest but the most joyous Advent seasons ever!

Taking on a long-term preschool position for a dear teacher friend on medical leave meant many people were praying for me this season. And wow!!! I felt those prayers. Truly. It was as if I was given the strength of Wonder Woman and the energy of the Energizer Bunny, not to glorify busyness, but to serve others with joy and endurance. To those of you who prayed for me; thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am deeply grateful.

On Christmas Eve, as I sang with my treble choir at church, the message of the song wrapped itself around everything this season had been… busy, beautiful, imperfect, and grace-filled. The reminder that in the midst of the noise, the sickness, the schedules, and the preparations, Christ is born… and all is well.

This Christmas will stand out for me. Not because it was flawless, but because it was faithful. After all the preparing and the franticness that so often accompanies the season, my heart can rest in this simple truth, there is peace in the middle of the miracle.

All is well.

Click on the link and hear my choir sing the song, All is Well on Christmas Eve. It’s at 55:18 but consider listening to the entire service, the scriptures, the powerful sermon, join in the liturgy, the traditional hymns, and the children’s sermon presented by The Noteworthy Mommy.

https://youtu.be/MIwpvs3EZ9A?si=QEmBZMWwORonosd2

“All Is Well”

by Michael W. Smith

All is well all is well

Angels and men rejoice

For tonight darkness fell

Into the dawn of love′s light

Sing A-le

Sing Alleluia

All is well all is well

Let there be peace on earth

Christ is come go and tell

That He is in the manger

Sing A-le

Sing Alleluia

All is well all is well

Lift up your voice and sing

Born is now Emmanuel

Born is our Lord and Savior

Sing Alleluia

Sing Alleluia

All is well

All is Well this Christmas

Published on by noteworthymommy3 Comments

Where is the Joy?- Throughout the season of Advent everything was harder then it needed to be. The gifts we ordered for my sister-in-law and her family were returned to sender. While writing our Christmas letter my computer keyboard stopped working, the labels printed incorrectly and FedEx couldn’t help me self print. I got the flu (knocking me out for days), the bottom strand of lights went out on our Christmas tree, we fell behind on our Christmas decorating, had winter weather, and I know someone was inadvertently left off our gift list. Have you ever had days or weeks like this where even the simplest task becomes frustrating and nothing seems to go smoothly? It appeared to be one thing after another and it kept coming, culminating with a pipe bursting at church on Christmas Eve leaving part of our sanctuary under water hours before worship services were to begin! Maneuvering through the missteps and obstacles sucked some of the joy out of what comes with the season of preparing. Although the moments were annoying, they were far from life altering and All is Well.

The First Christmas– Upon sharing my Advent obstacles I was reminded I was not alone. I heard from friends dealing with illnesses that set them back in their preparations and caused them to miss special celebrations. Others were spending the season navigating life without a loved one, making my inconveniences minor in comparison. My thoughts took me to the first Christmas where Mary and Joseph were faced with setbacks. No room at the inn, an unexpected birth in a stable surrounded by animals, and a manager for a bed! Throughout their journey they never lost hope and All is Well.

All Is Well This Christmas– Members of our Zion congregation band together with shop vacs in hand and cleaned up our sanctuary in a little over an hour and our Christmas Eve services commenced. All Is Well! On Christmas morning our cards had been sent, our halls were decked, presents wrapped, and we were ready to invite family and friends into our home to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All Is Well! And if you know St. Louis weather, in a few days the Arctic freeze melted away and it was 60 degrees! All Is Well!

Zion Lutheran Church Harvester before and after.
All is Well- spending time
with my family on Christmas Day 2022.

Looking Harder for the Joy- Sometimes we have to look harder to uncover the joy. It’s always there but we get distracted. This year the unexpected opened my eyes to what Christmas is truly about. Through the frustration of trying to get our Christmas letters printed I met Toya, a manager at the FedEx in Wal Mart. Toya was patient and kind and went out of her way to help me. After several visits to the store I felt we had made a connection and I asked her if she was a Christian. She said she was and with tears in her eyes shared this was the first Christmas without her son who had recently went to be with Jesus. I had a scripture ornament in my coat pocket, leftover from the Advent By Candlelight event at church, and I was moved to gift it to Toya. A sweet moment between two strangers in a world of chaos. All Is Well

My choir sang the song All Is Well on Christmas. I pray no matter what you are experiencing this Christmas you can find peace and love in the birth of our Lord and Savior, Emmanuel.

All Is Well All is well, all is well. Heaven and earth rejoice! For tonight darkness fell into the dawn of love’s light. Sing alle, sing alleluia!

All is well, all is well. Lift up your voice and sing. Born in now Emmanuel. Born is our Lord and Savior. Sing alleluia! All is well!

All is well. All is well. Let there be peace on Earth. Sing, for Christ is come, go and tell that He is in the manger. Sing alle, sing alleluia.

Born is now Emmanuel. Born is our Lord and Savior. Sing alleluia, alleluia!