Scripture Verse

She brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. Luke 2:7

Introduction

Words: Ca­ro­lyn W. Gil­lette, 1998. Pub­lished in her Gifts of Love: New Hymns for To­day’s Wor­ship (Ge­ne­va Press, 2000).

Music: Beech­er John Zun­del, Chris­tian Heart Songs 1870 (🔊 pdf nwc).

portrait
Carolyn W. Gillette (1961–)

Lyrics

illustration
Adoration of the Shepherds
Sebastiano Ricci (1659–1734)

In a feed box, in a sta­ble,
Jesus slept up­on the hay;
So, our God, you came among us,
Bringing peace on earth that day.
Beautiful up­on the mount­ain!
Christ, you bring us God’s sha­lom;
May we share your love and jus­tice
In each land and town and home.

In a shel­ter, poor and home­less,
Sleeps a child up­on her bed;
In a base­ment hides a fam­ily,
Bombs ex­plod­ing ov­er­head.
Jesus, you knew want and hun­ger;
Your own fa­mi­ly fled the sword.
May we see you, may we hear you,
In each one op­pressed or poor.

In the church, we seek your pre­sence;
Prince of Peace, you meet us here:
See! A per­son seek­ing shel­ter.
See! An­oth­er filled with fear.
See! A world where lives are brok­en;
Give us strength and help us care,
Till our love for ev­ery neigh­bor
Fills each thought and act and pray­er.