A Very Special Christmas: Bringing Peace On Earth
Posted October 11, 2012
By KevinDavis_NRT, Staff Reviewer
A Very Special Christmas is the single most successful benefit recording series in musical history, generating more than $100 million in royalties to benefit Special Olympics. The series is the largest single source of funding for Special Olympics and its athletes. As "A Very Special Christmas" celebrates its 25th year, Word Records is proud to present the first-ever Christian Market version in the "A Very Special Christmas" series, entitled Bringing Peace On Earth. There are a lot of choices when it comes to Christmas music. This year more than ever, I felt a bit overwhelmed when I started to listen to various takes of classic Christmas songs like “Joy To The World,” “Away In A Manger” and “Silent Night.” Thankfully, as much as I love those songs, they don’t appear on this excellent compilation.
Every song is a highlight for me especially the original Christmas songs by Sidewalk Prophets, Dara Maclean, Chris August and Meredith Andrews. There are also spectacular renditions of “O Holy Night” by Group 1 Crew, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” by Francesca Battistelli and “O Come All Ye Faithful” by Big Daddy Weave. There are three original songs that stop me in my tracks, “Bethlehem Skies” by Dara Maclean feat. Dave Barnes, “Jesus, Savior” by Chris August and “He Has Come For Us” which is an amazing medley with “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” by Meredith Andrews. I get goose bumps when I sing along with Meredith at the top of my lungs, this song “He Has Come For Us” is incredibly powerful and proclaims the biblical Truth of Christmas. Each time during the song right after Meredith sings the famous lyrics from the classic Christmas hymn of the faith “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”—“O, tidings of comfort and joy” she sings the profound worship chorus: “He has come for us, This Jesus, He's the hope for all Mankind, He has come for us, The Messiah, Born to give us life.” That’s the application of the song. Jesus is our “tiding of comfort and joy.” This song is our worshipful response to our endless seeking for true comfort and true joy.
Dara Maclean and Meredith Andrews sing their respective songs with such passion it is hard to not get caught up in the emotion of the songs. Both songs are a fantastic way to witness what it means to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas, which is to worship our King Jesus. Jesus gave of Himself. His gift was free and undeserved. That’s the true meaning of Christmas. When you allow that to sink down from your head into your heart, it changes us and how we respond. It affects all aspects of our lives. My prayer for my life and my family is that we all truly understand that Jesus came for each one of us. Our response is to worship Him and share Him with others who don’t know Him. Amen to that!
CLOSING THOUGHTS
A Very Special Christmas: Bringing Peace On Earth is a truly fresh and catchy set of excellent Christmas songs. Vocally, these sixteen artists, including for KING & COUNTRY, Dara Maclean, Chris August, Sidewalk Prophets, Meredith Andrews, Jason Castro, BarlowGirl and Francesca Battistelli bring such passion and talent to these songs, I can't help but experience the true spirit of Christmas. I'll be listening to these amazing songs consistently this holiday season. A Very Special Christmas: Bringing Peace On Earth prepares my heart and mind to celebrate and revere the birth of my King. View All Music And Book Reviews By KevinDavis_NRT | View KevinDavis_NRT's Profile
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