{"id":2304,"date":"2011-12-24T01:41:39","date_gmt":"2011-12-24T06:41:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/simplelife\/?p=2304"},"modified":"2011-12-24T11:14:38","modified_gmt":"2011-12-24T16:14:38","slug":"the-christmas-carol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/12\/the-christmas-carol.html","title":{"rendered":"The Christmas Carol"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forty years ago Christmas Eve was the first time I heard the sound of my favorite Christmas Carol.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>She squeaked a cry a few seconds after she was born. \u00a0Carol weighed six pounds and she was 17 inches long. \u00a0She had come three weeks early on Christmas Eve. \u00a0We named her on the way to the hospital, Carol Christa.<\/p>\n

From the moment she was born, my Christmas Carol has been a joy. \u00a0Today she will spend a few hours celebrating her birthday but this morning will be filled with sermon preparation for her Christmas sermon. \u00a0This evening, Christmas preparation will absorb her.<\/p>\n

As normal, by the afternoon, she will be drained of all the energy and vitality that punctuates her life. \u00a0But after a good night’s rest and she’ll be up at 4AM for time alone, to write and seek the Lord.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Her voice is no longer a squeak. \u00a0It is strong and resounding. \u00a0Her heart is bold and eager to find new avenues of ministry and delight. \u00a0As a wife and mother, she extends a gentle touch that I never possessed. \u00a0She is a pastor at Western Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. and author of two books, Tribal Church<\/em> and Reframing Hope. \u00a0<\/em>Rev. Merritt blogs at Christian Century.<\/p>\n

Happy Birthday, Christmas Carol. \u00a0You have blessed me your whole life.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Forty years ago Christmas Eve was the first time I heard the sound of my favorite Christmas Carol. She squeaked a cry a few seconds after she was born. \u00a0Carol weighed six pounds and she was 17 inches long. \u00a0She had come three weeks early on Christmas Eve. \u00a0We named her on the way to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":387,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,334,40,186,49,16],"tags":[338,21,688,340,339,699,715,701,6,700],"class_list":["post-2304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christianity","category-christmas","category-faith","category-hope","category-inspiration","category-intellectual-disability","tag-carol-howard-merritt","tag-christian","tag-christianity","tag-christmas-carols","tag-christmas-eve","tag-faith","tag-hope","tag-inspiration","tag-simple-scriptural-truths","tag-spirituality"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Christmas Carol - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/12\/the-christmas-carol.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Christmas Carol - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Forty years ago Christmas Eve was the first time I heard the sound of my favorite Christmas Carol. 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Howard\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Christmas Carol - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplelife\/2011\/12\/the-christmas-carol.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Christmas Carol - A Simple Life, a Childlike Faith","og_description":"Forty years ago Christmas Eve was the first time I heard the sound of my favorite Christmas Carol. 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