Behind door 2 of my advent calendar is:
A WALK IN THE SNOW
WARNING: THIS POST MAY NEVER ALLOW YOU TO THINK THE SAME WAY ABOUT A MUCH LOVED POEM.
My favourite Advent hymn is ‘O Come, O Come, Emmanuel’. For many years, it was hearing its first verse being beautifully sung as a solo at the start of the school carol service that marked for me the beginning of Christmas. ‘Emmanuel’ is a big Bible word. It is one of the names that we are told in scripture will be given to Jesus. [Isaiah 7:7]. It means ‘God with us’ and it confirms that we really are right to think of Jesus as, not only fully man, but also fully God.
The idea that God is with us is one that is repeated throughout the Bible. Back in the first book of the Old Testament we read in Genesis 5:22 how Enoch walked with God, the psalmist speaks of how the the Lord of hosts is with his people, [Psalm 46:7] and in the closing chapters of the last book of the New Testament we read how God will dwell with his people even as he himself will be with them as their God. [Revelation 21:3]
Little wonder then that this deeply comforting thought has inspired some to put pen to paper. Whilst there are a number of versions of the much loved poem ‘Footsteps’, this is the one that I find most affecting.
One night a man had a dream. He dreamed
he was walking along the beach with the LORD.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand: one belonging
to him, and the other to the LORD.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him,
he looked back at the footprints in the sand.
He noticed that many times along the path of
his life there was only one set of footprints.
He also noticed that it happened at the very
lowest and saddest times in his life.
This bothered the man and so he
questioned the LORD about it:
“LORD, you said that once I decided to follow
you, you’d walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don’t understand why when
I needed you most you would leave me.”
The LORD replied:
“My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that we hopped!
OK, I admit that the original version seeks to be more uplifting and ends with Jesus explaining to the man that it was in the difficult times of his life that he was being carried, but I prefer the above version by comedian, and Christian, Tim Vine. Not only does it make me laugh but it also stops me from thinking that there is ever a time when I, prone to stumble as I am, don’t need to be carried. Personally I find it more comforting to read Deuteronomy 33:27 where I find the reassurance that ‘The eternal God is [my] dwelling place and underneath [me] are [his] everlasting arms’.
Because life can sometimes be hard and when it is, it can often be difficult to know which way to turn – it can be easy to feel lost.
Some years ago, whilst out on a walk, one of my children announced that they were lost. This was on account of said child not having a clue as to where they were. But the individual in question was wrong – they weren’t lost, because the one who held their hand, [me], knew exactly where they were.
I knew the way home.
Perhaps you’re struggling at the moment, perhaps you can’t see a way through all that’s going on this Christmas time. But be assured – you’re not lost if you’re being held by the one who knows exactly where you are and who, even in the most difficult of circumstances, knows the way home.
And that ‘one’ is Emmanuel, the God who is with us, the one who knows ‘the end from the beginning’ [Isaiah 46:10]. Why not take his hand and discover that he already holds you – tighter than you could ever possibly imagine?
*****
I’ll end today with a particularly fine rendition of a traditional version of ‘O Come, O Come Emmanuel’ sung here by The St.Michael’s Singers, conducted by Paul Leddington Wright. As all good waiters/waitresses say, ‘Enjoy’!
Related blogs:
To read ‘A Christmas Countdown – Day 1’, click here
To read ‘An Advent Calendar – Complete’, click here
Some musings 