The Midnight Cry

I hear the sound

Of a mighty rushing wind

And it's closer now

Than it's ever been

I can almost hear the trumpet

And as Gabriel sounds the call

At the midnight cry

We'll be goin' home

“The Midnight Cry” by Chuck & Greg Day

Another Christian Year is closing with plenty of reasons to think our Lord’s return must surely be near. Each Christian Year begins with Advent, a season intended mainly for anticipating Christ’s return. Like most sacred aspects of the birth narrative of Jesus, Advent is more often used as a candy-coated countdown to Christmas celebrations. The Church Fathers (think figuratively with that term) intended to keep Christian Believers focused on Christ’s first coming prophecies fulfilled, so they would be equally prepared for His second coming promises to be fulfilled. Advent is a word that expresses the imminence of Christ’s return, as if it is as near as the next turn of the calendar. 

Absurdly, it is actually wise to dwell upon the hardships of the last year and its ample justifications for anxiety as we begin the new Christian Year. We would do well to look around and see those whose lives are not so blessed and to imagine how they feel about Christmas cheer and abundance. Spend some time considering the evil experienced by so many people you know of throughout the last year. Embrace your grief and disappointment for a little while. Why!? you may ask. Well, because ignorant bliss and worldly satisfaction blinds us to the desperate need for Christ’s return and reign. Then, if you are so fortunate, when you gather around the table of Thanksgiving and the Christmas gatherings in peace and prosperity, praise God above all else and count your blessings. 

If the sorrows and fears seem inescapable during the long nights of the season, then pray for the midnight cry to come soon. When you see symbols and signs of Christ’s first coming cry, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!” Remember, His first coming brought about the blessed hope for all who received His gift of redemption and eternal new life in His Spirit. Remember, all the saints who now live in spirit with the LORD. Imagine, if you can, the glorious Day of the LORD when His light will shine across all creation and they will follow Him here as we rise to meet them. 

It may not make sense yet, but I’m betting that, if you do these things, you will have a better Thanksgiving and Christmas. One more suggestion remains and it comes from Scripture – “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25 NLT) Your Christian family is every bit as important as your natural one, especially when you consider living with them for all eternity.