“When the song of the angel is stilled
When the star in the sky is gone
When the kings and princes are home
When the shepherds are back with their flock
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost
To heal the broken
To feed the hungry
To release the prisoner
To rebuild the nations
To bring peace among brothers and sisters
To make music in the heart.”
Howard Thurman
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The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news
to the suffering and afflicted.
He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted,
to announce liberty to captives,
and to open the eyes of the blind.
He has sent me to tell those who mourn
that the time of God’s favor to them has come,
and the day of his wrath to their enemies.
To all who mourn in Israel he will give:
beauty for ashes;
joy instead of mourning;
praise instead of heaviness.
For God has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for his own glory.
Isaiah 61:1-3 TLB