Click above to listen to my arrangement of Coventry Carol as you read. This track version is from 2009 Best Holiday Album December Peace (ZMR Awards, winning over Enya and Yo-Yo Ma). If you enjoy, please consider sampling and ordering the CD, MP3 Album or sheet music. You can also listen and download on iTunes and all other digital outlets.
This story is from 31 Days of December Peace (soft cover or eBook). Also available from Amazon Kindle, iTunes, and other e-Readers.
Where could you use some “December Peace” today?
God Has Not Forgotten ~ by Jeff Gorman, thelukeproject.org (Copyright 2012, Jeff Gorman, not to be re-published without permission)
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” – Psalm 147:3
When I was seven, growing up on the outskirts of Atlanta, I decided I wanted a motorcycle. So off to the bank I went, not wanting to wait. I borrowed $165.00 with a little help from Dad and Mr. Morris, the neighborhood banker. I worked for 50 cents an hour and purchased a Honda QA 50. Life feels pretty great sometimes and this was certainly one of those times.
As we all get a little older, we realize life can send some very difficult things our way. Some are seemingly by chance, while others are a result of our choices, and we end up feeling like God has forgotten about us. You might say my divorce, illness, death in the family, financial crisis or
emotional storm has left me feeling like I will never surface from the sea of difficulty.
It wasn’t long before I began to outgrow the motorcycle. As a young boy I truly wondered if I would experience the joy and peace of someday having another motorcycle. After what seemed like forever, when I was in the fourth grade, one cold December morning I walked into the den, and discovered Santa had left a Honda SL 70 under the Christmas tree. I can still see the big red bow on the gas tank. Santa did not forget about me, and God will not forget about you, your pain, and the unique challenge that weighs you down.
Hang in there. God can’t wait to surprise you with healing or a new job. Regardless of your challenge, when he wraps your gift you can rest assured He knows just what you need. Trust Him. May December be a reminder of the greatest gift of all – Jesus.
It started in 2011. My mother died, we cleaned out the house, and my dad moved to live nearer to me with my next oldest brother. A shoulder impingement turned into a torn rotator cuff, which required surgery, I was bullied at work for something that I had to take responsibility for but did not do and finally chose to resign. Then Dad passed away 19 months later.
I stayed on in my job to finish my contract. Exhausted, overwhelmed by grief that I could not even fully experience in and of itself, and continually badgered by a group of individuals and abandoned by those who chose to distance themselves from me, I wondered aloud, “Where are you, God?”
I went to see a gifted Christian counselor who helped me see that Jesus was there all along. He understood my pain and anguish, and she led me gently into His presence to receive His grace and healing. He spoke to my soul to remind me that He knew what it was like to be publicly mocked and shamed and that He shed His blood of forgiveness despite it all. As a result, I have emerged stronger in Him and grateful that He allowed me to experience a taste of what He went through. As painful as it was at the time, I have emerged more fully present in Him. I am forever grateful for this gift.