There’s A Place For You At The Table

The Dec. 15, 2015 edition of CCM Magazine

We have come to our final edition of CCM Magazine for the month December, and for the year 2015. In our previous issue, singer-songwriter and author, Andrew Greer, brought us three conversations surrounding the idea of Christmas & Communion—making new connections with each other, and with God.

Nathan Cochran beautifully expressed how he and his MercyMe band mates find Christmas to be a time of celebration, and how they choose to focus on family as a response to God “entering into the human story.” Laura Story, moved by “the greatest gift to all of humanity,” recorded her first Christmas album, God With Us, this year, and Point Of Grace’s Leigh Cappillino shared some of her family’s rich Christmastime traditions (and a scrumptious mac-n-cheese recipe!).

In this issue, Greer sits down with leading worshippers and songwriters Chris Tomlin, Keith Getty, and Jon and Valerie Guerra, and dives a little more into the very thing that “sets the table” for this time of communion—music.

No matter how you slice it, you can’t refute Greer’s emphatic opening statement, “Christmastime simply would not be Christmastime without music.” It’s true! Think about it, everything would be wrong if we found ourselves at our local mall in the middle of December—surrounded by the visual fanfare of trees, garland, reindeer and Santa Clauses—while a Muzak version of Bruce Hornsby’s “The Way It Is” was sheepishly playing over the intercom speakers.

All of the artists mentioned above (excluding Hornsby), have responded to the meaning of Christ’s birth in their lives with music. How will you respond this year? Will you casually glaze over the singing of hymns and carols, or will you return a heartfelt praise to Him? Jesus isn’t expecting an eloquent vibrato, or a slickly produced Christmas CD—He desires a renewed connection. There’s an open seat for you at His table.

Merry Christmas,