“Oh sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth! Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.”

Psalm 96:1-2

Happy New Year! And a continued Merry Christmas as the celebration of Christ’s birth continues for a few more days. I remain humbled and honored that you continue to open and read these weekly emails. I hope they have enhanced your morning cup of coffee and have helped you, even if in a small way, on your journey with Jesus. Here’s to 2023!

A favorite author of mine, Chad Bird, recently shared a reflection on a strange sentiment that is often expressed at funerals and in the wake of death. Often times we get our theology from Hallmark or Hollywood instead of the Holy Word. Have you ever heard, said, or thought—maybe even hoped—that our dearly departed loved ones become angels upon their death? Bird reminds us that biblically this is untrue.

In short, God wants you to be human. That’s why He made you a human. If He wanted you to be an angel, He would have made you an angel. Angels are not fully realized and actualized humans. These heavenly beings are not humans perfected. They are a different breed all together.

Christmas is the celebration of Jesus becoming human. In fact, he is Thee human. The only human. You and me? We are less than human. We are fallen humans. Life in Christ—confirming our lives to His—this is our hope. This is the goal of our elevation.

Don’t believe me yet? Were angels made in the image of God? No—you are. You have the thumbprints of the Almighty covering you.

To burst another bubble this morning—most of our Christmas Carols are wrong. The angels didn’t sing Gloria, in excelsis Deo. Go read the account again—Luke 2:13. They didn’t sing those iconic words. They spoke them.

Angels speak. Humans are the ones who sing.

As we head into another year, don’t lose your singing voice. I hope everything goes your way in 2023. I hope so. But I’m also certain that it won’t. Until the return of Jesus, darkness will continue to lurk. It’ll fight like hell to close in on you and make you loose your God given human calling—to sing.

All creation sings of His glory. But humans—YOU—you sit in the first chair. Your voice is the one that is music to our Father’s ears.

So keep singing. Sing on the mountain tops and in the valleys. Sing with creation and the private depths of your soul. Sing in the shadows, through the storms, and in the midst of the desert. Sing fanfares and jubilees along side a funeral dirge. Keep singing.

This is my hope for you for 2023–that you sing. And you don’t stop!

What’s your favorite song to belt out while driving?