O Little Town of Bethlehem


O little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee to-night.
O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth!
And praises sing to God the King,
And peace to men on earth.
For Christ is born of Mary,
And gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love.
How silently, oh how silently,
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of his heaven.
No ear may hear his coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him, still *1
The dear Christ enters in.
Where children pure and happy
Pray to the blessed Child,
Where misery cries out to thee,
Son of the mother mild;
Where charity stands watching
And faith holds wide the door,
The dark night wakes, the glory breaks,
And Christmas comes once more.
O holy Child of Bethlehem!
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born in us to-day.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Emmanuel!

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One week till Christmas!  Time goes so quickly!


One of the reasons I enjoy this carol so much is because is its a very peaceful, quiet sounding song.  I think that its sound fits its subject matter.  Bethlehem was a small town, nobody really expected anyone great or famous to come out of such a place.  But it was prophesied that the savior would be born there, and that's how it happened.  I have been thinking alot this year about how the hand of God is in each event and detail of Christ's birth.  And the significance of the where's and who's and what's of the nativity story were not only important in those times but they are still meaningful and we can still learn from them today.  Christ being born in Bethlehem teaches us that God fulfills His prophecies and promises, and He does it in such a way that it could only be Him!

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