I can’t hear this Christmas song without weeping. It was just last week when I heard it sung by Michael W. Smith in concert. True to form, the tears immediately streamed down my face as the orchestra began. What's with this song? I think it takes me out of my ordinary day, complete with busyness, distractions, and the joys of life to a different place. It lifts my eyes from the ordinary to the extraordinary. The temporal to eternal…..the simple to exquisite…..the earth to heaven.
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, 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.
(Written by Michael W Smith and Wayne Kirkpatrick, beautifully sung by Carrie Underwood and Michael W. Smith)
It’s an interesting title for a Christmas song. For many, all is not well at Christmas time. Christmas time can tend to heighten the pain that already exists with folks. Marital strife, singleness, depression, a recent loss, addiction, work challenges or a scary diagnosis certainly can dampen one’s spirits. To say “all is well” feels really like a stretch for some.
This song is not about our circumstances. It’s about a reality that takes us to a different plane. It’s about how heaven came down to earth in the form of a baby, the baby Jesus. When we grasp the wonder of His birth found in Luke 2:1-20, well …… it causes us to worship. Worship takes our minds off of ourselves and places it on the only One worthy to be praised.
All is well because of Christ. We are not alone in our marital strife or singleness or depression, our recent loss or addiction or work challenges or scary diagnoses. As we lift our eyes from our circumstances to our God, we see the promises of God take root. He walks with us through our pain. He comforts us in our grief. He fills our loneliness with more of Himself. He brings hope when hope seems lost. He brings peace instead of fear. For this, all is well.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:16-17
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.
It’s an interesting title for a Christmas song. For many, all is not well at Christmas time. Christmas time can tend to heighten the pain that already exists with folks. Marital strife, singleness, depression, a recent loss, addiction, work challenges or a scary diagnosis certainly can dampen one’s spirits. To say “all is well” feels really like a stretch for some.
This song is not about our circumstances. It’s about a reality that takes us to a different plane. It’s about how heaven came down to earth in the form of a baby, the baby Jesus. When we grasp the wonder of His birth found in Luke 2:1-20, well …… it causes us to worship. Worship takes our minds off of ourselves and places it on the only One worthy to be praised.
All is well because of Christ. We are not alone in our marital strife or singleness or depression, our recent loss or addiction or work challenges or scary diagnoses. As we lift our eyes from our circumstances to our God, we see the promises of God take root. He walks with us through our pain. He comforts us in our grief. He fills our loneliness with more of Himself. He brings hope when hope seems lost. He brings peace instead of fear. For this, all is well.
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:16-17
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.
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