no peace on earth...

I'm not entirely sure why, but this is my favorite Christmas hymn. I know, I'm weird. I just love it. It's a little bit of a haunting song, I know. But it is so full of hope! And the words are so bold. They're arranged in the LDS hymnbook a little differently than it was originally written, and there are a few verses left out, but the message is the same.

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”

Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.

What a powerful message. God is not dead! The right will prevail! Peace will reign.

Why will peace reign? How will peace reign? Peace will reign because of the Prince of Peace. Who doesn't love Isaiah, later so masterfully put to music by Handel, when he testifies of our Savior,

For unto us a ^achild is ^bborn, unto us a ^cson is given: and the ^dgovernment shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, ^eCounsellor, The ^fmighty ^gGod, The ^heverlasting Father, The Prince of ⁱPeace. (Isaiah 9:6)

I love the scripture in the Book of Mormon: "And we ^atalk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we ^bprophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our ^cchildren may know to what source they may look for a ^dremission of their sins." (2 Nephi 25:26)

During this Christmas season, it may seem a little easier to talk to our friends and our family about our love of Christ and His love for us. What a beautiful knowledge to share with others: we know He lives. We know he is the Prince of Peace. We know who to turn to for comfort, for peace, for calm in this crazy world we live in. And let me just say, it IS crazy. Satan tries his hardest to confuse us, to lead us astray, to make us forget the importance of Christ in our lives, or even to tell us that we do not need Christ. To speak of being bold, Satan's lies go so far as to say that Christ is bad for us! Who doesn't see the constant barrage against Christians and the celebration of Christ and His birth? Satan knows that we need Christ. It is a very real war we are in. But because we know Christ, and because we know He lives, we have the privilege and the responsibility of bearing witness of Him. So offer your friends and family peace. Offer them the wonderful message of our Savior. Celebrate His birth with boldness and with hope.