Responsive Readings for Christmas Candlelight Services

Our Christmas Candlelight Service is always one of my favorite times of worship each year. It's quite a contrast with the Christmas Nativity Pageant where we try to corral the energy and attention of 40+ kiddos. With festive carols, special music, a Christmas meditation and, of course, the candle-lighting, this service always tends to be both joyful and contemplative. I like these candles from Will & Baumer.

The liturgy during the candle-lighting should be thoughtfully prepared. It needs to be somewhat concise so the candles do not burn too low. (A simple instruction to tip only the unlit candles for lighting will prevent a mess of candle wax.)

A quiet carol or two sung a capella by the congregation is nice while the candle light is spreading through the sanctuary. Silent Night, Away in a Manger, O Little Town of Bethlehem, or Now Shine A Thousand Candles Bright are excellent choices.

I always like to have a responsive reading during the candle-lighting. Here are two that I've have used: a poem written by my late father and a scripture reading. Feel free to snag them if they can be of use in your services. 

The Holy Light by Ray Satterfield

Into a world of darkness, Into a world of night

God sends the gospel message, Filling our hearts with light.

The prophets have been silent, Four hundred long, long years,  

When first a candle flickers, And a small flame appears.

This candle is John the Baptist; He's sent to point the way 

To a great light more brilliant, The light that will bring DAY.

The light of angel glory Is next to come to earth;

The angels sang the story Of a most wondrous birth.

Then high up in the heavens, A star shines forth so bright,    

The Wise Men in a far-off land Rejoice to see its light.

The star leads them to Bethlehem, And there it is they find,

The Christ-Child, The Messiah, The Savior of mankind.

"I've come to banish darkness," I hear Him gently say,

"Just open up your heart to Me; I'll enter if I may."

And now the faithful Christians Reflect that holy light,

Together they shine brightly, To drive away the night.

And yet MORE LIGHT awaits us, A wondrous, dazzling white:

Soon all of heaven's glories Will burst upon our sight!

Christ the Light

The LORD is my light and my salvation.

The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. 

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” 

For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 

When I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me. For thou wilt light my candle: the LORD my God will enlighten my darkness. 

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

The Miracle of Christmas

The miracle of the Christmas:

 omnipotence vulnerable,

omnipresence confined to the virgin womb, 

eternity entering the realm of time. 

"If we could imagine crowding the Pacific Ocean into a teakettle, 

we can get a glimpse of the miracle of trying to crowd God into human form." 

~ D. Shelby Corlett ~

A Perfect Christmas

Christmas is sitting up through the night with a grieving family and being able to tell them they can make it because God is with us.

We want the magical, the festive, or perhaps the contemplative Christmas. We want the hot chocolate and fireplaces. We want children’s eyes sparkling with wonder. We want hearts exploding with jubilant carols. We want the idyllic Christmas nativity program with almost perfect cherubs and slightly mischievous shepherds, a sweet Mary and kind Joseph, and a cute little baby doll wrapped up tight. We want Christmas to be perfect.

We light a few candles. We put fresh hay down and make sure there’s no manure in this rustic stable. It’s got to be perfect. It’s got to feel like Christmas.

But can there even be Christmas for the young lady who has just lost her mom? Can there be Christmas when emotions are raw and pain is deep? Can there be Christmas when it all feels hopeless?

Just maybe the grieving and hurting will not be so distracted by the glitz and glimmer of Christmas. Maybe now their eyes can focus on the God of Christmas.

Perhaps the best Christmas is when we see Bethlehem’s Baby for who He is–Jesus, the One who would take away the sins of the world. Perhaps the best Christmas is when we see the Christ-Child as He is–Emmanuel, God with us, walking with us in human experience. Surely the perfect Christmas is more than a sanitized storybook Christmas with colorful scenes recapturing childish imagination. It’s more than words and images, fancy or even history. Christmas is God stepping into the story of our lives… as Savior, to forgive our sins… as Emmanuel, to walk along the pathway of human experience with us.

So perhaps if you want to feel the spirit of Christmas, instead of scheduling another party, go visit a grieving friend. I believe you will sense the presence of the Christ-child because “the Lord is near to the brokenhearted.”

Are you facing Christmas without a loved one this year? Perhaps this book would be a bit of help to you: A Decembered Grief: Living with Loss While Others are Celebrating.

The Christmas Missionary

Perhaps this Christmas finds you far from home and family. It's Christmas and you'll only be "home" in your dreams. The call of God has brought you to a new land, to a new people, to a new mission. The calendar is approaching the 25th of December, but the weather is hot and muggy. A white Christmas is not even a remote possibility. It's hard to feel the magic of the season. 

If, as John Stott famously taught in the Bible Study at Urbana in '76, "the living God is a missionary God" (Perspectives, pg 9),  then Christmas was the greatest missionary endeavor of all time. 

You know what it is like. You have left the familiar to venture into the unknown for the sake of the gospel. You have pressed ahead, leaving your comfort zone and many conveniences behind so that you could identify with those whom you serve. You have been sweating over your language studies so you can understand and communicate effectively. It’s hard, but you are hopeful.

The Christmas Missionary, Jesus himself, did it all. Leaving it all behind. Living as one of us. Loving beyond measure.

Hudson Taylor discarded his European styles for Chinese garb. Jesus stepped into our world as flesh and blood wrapped in swaddling clothes.

Translators from William Cary and Henry Martyn to the hundreds of Wycliffe Bible Translators have worked tireless to provide the Word of God in the mother tongue of people groups around this globe. The Christmas Missionary was the Living Word who became flesh and dwelt among us.

Many missionaries have struggled trying to find a competent and reliable interpreter. God communicated directly with us through his Son.

Nameless and forgotten missionaries who, with their lives, paved the way for the gospel to be spread into Africa, communist China or the deep jungles of the Amazon, were only following in the footsteps of the Christmas Missionary who came “to seek and to save that which was lost” and “to give his life a ransom for many.”

Perhaps your mission work at Christmas feels more glum than glamorous. I’d encourage you to spend some extra time visiting with this veteran Missionary. See His battle scars and hear His war stories. After all, the Christmas Missionary was the greatest missionary of all time. You’ll learn something new about cross-cultural ministry from the One who carried the cross. You’ll learn something about sacrifice when you consider Him, “who, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross.” This Christmas, you are loving the people He loves; you are serving to advance the mission work He pioneered.