Good Words From the Gandalf of Christian Music

Michael Card wrote these beautiful words this season:
The Stable and the Cross
This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be spoken against,
so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.
|| LUKE 2:34-35 || NRSV ||
As our family gathers around our faint, flickering candle to read the Christmas story, the loneliness of the stable reminds us of the loneliness of another place on a hill outside Jerusalem. The rough trough seems almost as cruel a place as a cross. The infant cries we hear coming from the stable seem no less desperate than his final cry, and no less forsaken.
Celebrate? you say. Yes, most heartily, amidst the dung of the stable, which is, of course, the refuse of the world. Celebrate at the foot of that ghastly cross because it is the hope of the world. Gather around a cattle trough and celebrate a baby born in poverty and rejected, because he is the Savior of the world!
A.S. Peterson has crafted a work of compelling historical fiction which begs the question, “Can this really be a debut novel?” With dogged fidelity, Peterson captures the spirit, manners, and social conditions present during the American Revolutionary War. We meet colorful, credible characters who navigate the high seas of life and love, dependence and independence, war and peace, truth and consequence, and despite forays into dark places, The Fiddler’s Gun is beautiful, lyrical, and redemptive.
Thankyou for this reminder Mr. Peterson. What a wonderous time is the Celebration of the Incarnation.
Mr. Card’s songs have always shaken something in me. It wasn’t until I heard the MAN speaking at the Ryman Thursday night that it hit me that there was a guy behind this profound music with even more pressing things to say . Thanks AP for the additional reminder and to both of you for the true meaning of Advent. You are both great messengers of the Word to these people.
Barliman,
“The Gandalf of Christian Music?” — priceless! I feel a YouTube video coming on.
Thanks for sharing his words. I read his book “Parable of Joy” as a personal devotion this past fall. It is an excellent work that like his music puts flesh and bone on certain passages that I might otherwise gloss over.
Merry Christmas!
A reminder that the Savior still resides in dirty stables like me.
If he’s Gandalf, then who are you? I got dibs on Fatty Bolger.
John S.
He is Barliman Butterbur formerly known as The Proprietor.