COME!

Although it is not frequently sung, one of my favorite Christmas carols is "Come, Thou Long-expected Jesus" by Charles Wesley.

Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne. 

The very first word always catches my attention - COME! The song is a reminder of the longing for a Messiah during a dark time and all that He would/did bring: hope, joy, strength, consolation, deliverance, rule, glory...presence. Revelation ends with a similar statement about His future 2nd advent. "He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!" Rev. 22:20

It is often the silent cry of my own heart: "Come!"  "Come into my work."  "Come into the lives of my kids."  "Come into my crazy schedule."  "Come into my finances....." YET ... His gentle answer is "I have come." He was called Immanuel - God with us. This was both descriptive of Jesus as He walked on the earth but also of His ongoing, very real presence among us as believers through the Holy Spirit. "I will never leave you." I don't need to ask Him to come into my schedule, work, children ... He is already there! What I need to be doing is looking, paying attention, joining, listening, obeying, worshiping.

By Thine own eternal Spirit

Rule in all our hearts alone!