An unlikely Advent anthem

So I was sitting in church yesterday and reading the bulletin just before the worship service started. It was the first Sunday of Advent, and sure enough, I noticed we would be singing familiar Advent- and Christmas-themed hymns about the birth of Jesus during the service. But the choir anthem's name caught my attention, and I noticed it was contemporary Christian singer Mandisa's song "Broken Hallelujah." I thought it was a rather odd choice for the first Sunday of Advent, but from the first words of the liturgy to the gospel reading from Matthew 24 about not knowing when the second coming of Jesus would happen to the pastor's sermon about being ready for what Christmas really means (the birth and expectantly awaiting the return of a savior in the midst of national chaos in first century Israel as well as in our own uncertain times,) the song seemed to fit by the time we got to the anthem immediately following the sermon.

Right before I had spinal fusion surgery, a very dear friend of mine had sent me the link to "Broken Hallelujah" and said she thought of me when she heard it. I listened to it as I read her email telling me she knew I'd be ok even though there were many Sundays I sat in church and could barely sing a hymn or pray without crying in the midst of excruciating back pain. This past summer, I watched this friend suffer with her own back pain and road to recovery and thanking God through her tears for many little things that matter most, and I had been given a unique opportunity to minister to her and her family because I've been healed through surgery. And just last week, another close friend of mine went through a double mastectomy to remove the signs of breast cancer even though she'd just run a marathon earlier in November. As I watch my friend go through the recovery process after surgery, I still see her praising God for all of the blessings she has in the midst of brokenness.

The holidays aren't always the most wonderful time of the year for many people who can't say there is peace on earth and goodwill to men. There is no joy in their world due to a death of a loved one, a job loss, a chronic illness, a runaway child, or a fire that destroyed everything they own. Someone may be dealing with an unwanted pregnancy because she'd been raped, and another is struggling in school because he's being bullied for learning difficulties. In those moments, we may wonder where God is. Or even if we sense God's presence, we can only offer a half-hearted attempt at praying or reading the Bible, if at all. 

But in moments when all I could offer was a broken hallelujah, I sensed that it was becoming something else: a butterfly breaking out of its cocoon and into a delicate reminder of hope after a struggle. As Mandisa's lyrics struck a chord in my life, my prayer is that they'll also ring true in your life and give you hope that you never thought was possible.

Mandisa "Broken Hallelujah" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH16B5449Iw