“We wish you a Merry Christmas!
We wish you a Merry Christmas!
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
And a Happy New Year!”
This was the melody drifting across the parking lot on the final shopping Saturday before Christmas. I happen to be in balmy Abbotsford, B.C., but the sound of a Salvation Army brass ensemble could be heard in any number of communities across this expansive country. As this collection of young and…. not so young… folks play common Christmas carols to all who pass by – – I witness something fascinating. (Sidebar: the benefit of not growing up Army or playing an instrument was that I could stand beside the kettle and watch this wonderful moment unfold).
You see, with every musical note that bounces between the snowflakes and floats between the dashing people, the cars and the shopping carts, I watch an interesting phenomenon begin to take place…. Ready for it?
People smile.
People are smiling.
We aren’t just talking about hiding a shy grin, but literal ear-to-ear, almost laughing, hurts-the-cheeks, tooth-filled smiles! The simple sound of Christmas carols played on brass instruments while they are walking into a store, and I see before my very eyes people’s hearts turning to mush; they can’t even contain their happiness. Their smile is giving them away. The normally intensely stressed faces of those with too much to do and too little time, for those who have been fighting the crowds for weeks, I see them actually pause long enough to listen to a few bars, to pull out some change or small bills to pop into the kettle before heading about their business. But this time, something is different. They go about their day with a smile on their face!
Because I am not a ‘band geek’, I may never *fully* get it. But this morning, I felt I got it as much as I ever will. I felt I understood why these bandsmen and women were so committed and willing to sacrifice their last shopping Saturday before Christmas to play some tunes for strangers. I got to see the gift of hope and of Christmas that was being offered through music, and how freely it was accepted by the passers-by!
So too is the gift of salvation through Jesus free:). I think as God listens to the sounds of the band, and as he watches the shoppers’ smiling faces, he is saying to all of us, “Now THIS is the way I want you to celebrate my Son’s birthday! Enjoy the sounds of Christmas my children!”
So,... in the words of one converted Ebenezer Scrooge and Andrea Bocelli, “God bless us everyone!”
