Hope From "Hearing The Bells"

 

I didn’t remember the story behind the song,

 

“I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day”

 

until today.

 

I just knew I wanted to hear it.

 

My Luke sang this song with our church choir during the Christmas 2019 season.

 

I videoed it and put it on my youtube channel.

 

As of the time of this writing, it has 714 views.

 

I’m sure I’m a good percentage of those views.

 

So many times when I’ve needed hope,

I simply click on it and listen -

sometimes listening more than once.

 

Hearing it always makes me sigh with

joy, pride, and contentment at my Luke’s voice

and the words he and the choir are singing swell up in heart

and give me hope.

 

So, today, when I needed some hope

in the midst of a lot of disappointments,

I listened to the video.

 

And, once again, it did not disappoint.

 

The song reminds me that,

no matter what is going on

in my own little world,

my family’s world,

my community’s world,

and in the world at large,

there is always hope!

 

 

The song was written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

on Christmas Day in 1863

(some sources said 1862 and some said 1864

but most said 1863).

His wife had died in 1861 so he was a widowed father of 6

and his soldier son was home recovering from a war injury.

 

He was himself in need of hope on that Christmas Day.

And then he heard the bells.

 

Bells that, as he wrote,

“pealed…more loud and deep”

that

“GOD IS NOT DEAD, NOR DOTH HE SLEEP

The wrong shall fail,

The right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men.”

 

Hearing those bells gave Henry Longfellow hope.

Hearing my son sing his words today gave me hope.

 

I’m posting my video of Luke and our church choir singing this song again

and, if you are walking through

some disappointments

or some grief

or some sorrow

or it’s just been a long day,

I pray you find hope as well!