Michele Jordan is director of program development, Housing and Community Strategy, at Habitat for Humanity International. Read her Advent reflection below.
In the popular Christmas song “O, Holy Night,” a phrase has always stood out to me - “the weary world rejoices.” I didn’t understand this as a child and sang right over it. I probably even sang it cheerfully as I donned my black skirt and white blouse for the annual school Christmas program.
Fast forward to now, and I’m an adult with a mortgage, bills, health challenges and job concerns, and the lyrics ring true to me. Throughout the year, I find myself weary. I’m worn out. Like many others, I’m exhausted from everyday things, but I’m also weary from larger issues like political drama, systemic racism and the reality of losing loved ones.
As a woman of colour, I’m well aware of nuance all around me, whether fighting for a seat at the table or just basic customer service, or reading yet another news report about the inequities in health care (Black maternal health) or banking (those overlooked for loans even when they meet the qualifications). Regardless of the shoes you walk in, I’m sure you have faced hardships, trials and injustice. Like many of you, I have lost loved ones around the holidays. Their absence pierces my heart amid festive carols and chestnuts roasting.
When Christmas rolls around, if I’m honest, I am so weary. It takes everything sometimes just to put up a tree and think of a holiday menu. The holidays are often a blur.
When the world learned that its Saviour had been born, it was after centuries of weariness. The people had heard about Him, had longed for Him, and finally, like the newborns we welcome in our own families, they celebrated His arrival with unabashed joy. The wise men even travelled a long way to be part of this humble baby shower of sorts.
I love that the song lyrics recognize we are often spent when our biggest blessings arrive. This blessing was not just for one group of people but for the world. When we accept the gift of Jesus, the weary world rejoices.
This Advent season, let us remember that there is hope after sorrow. Our weariness can be replaced with celebration. As the old church folk would say, “Trouble don’t last always … joy comes in the morning.” But the night can also be a night divine.
Dear Lord, when the holidays arrive, we may not always be in the most festive of moods. Help us to remember that we are not alone in this feeling. Help us to know that You sent Your Son to save the world from this weariness that would have us burdened forever. Remind us to rejoice always, and again we say rejoice.
