Some people think that artists of different art forms are highly talented, and that they, themselves, could not possibly create such beautiful works of art. I beg to differ. We are all talented in some way, and God does not pick and choose who receives what gift. It is up to each of us to lovingly accept His gifts and to create more beauty for an already beautiful world. All He asks of us is that we take care of the world He has given us.
On this Christmas Eve of 2025, I watched the movie, I Heard the Bells, as inspiration for my blog. It is the true story of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s family and how hearing the bells on Christmas Eve kept their hearts and minds strong through the Civil War and the loss of Henry’s second wife, Fanny Appleton. I am by no means a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, but we have something in common. We are talented artists, who have lovingly taken what God has given us, and used it to beautifully color His creation with our souls and with our faith, even in troubled times when our faiths have been challenged. Doubts and fears may have colored how we responded to life’s challenges, but our faiths made possible beautiful artistic forms in spite of those challenges.
Since I was a child, the bells in church steeples have called me to use my music and my writing ability to lift people’s spirits and to make their time sharing worship with others a beautiful experience. It is in lifting the spirits of others that I have found the most profound presence of Jesus Christ in my life. On Christmas Eve, the dawn of the morning is soon upon us, and the night’s stars brightly call us to look up to see the one Star over the manger in Bethlehem. God’s love is eternal, and He will never forsake us. As love is eternal, so is Jesus Christ’s love, the reason we are called to worship Him on every Christmas Eve.
Henry spoke of peace on earth and good will to men in his poem, I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day. Once again, we repeat and joyfully sing familiar carols, and we hear the belfries of churches ring out, “Come to worship the King!.” During the Civil War, many people of the North and the South cried out, “We have no peace on earth; hate is strong; hate mocks the joy of the bells.” The bells ring out louder and more deeply to say, “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep.” What is right will prevail over what is wrong. And still, the bells persistently ring out. We sing our praises into the world so that we may be faithful to the One who gave us life.
The bells of churches announce the birth of Jesus Christ today, but the peace we seek is hard to find. Many do not respond to the music of the bells because their faith has died. My eyes look to the skies for that one beautiful Star over the manger. My voice sings out, “God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good.” My ears hear His voice through the melodies of the bells. My heart says, “My love is stronger than any hate in this world.” My faith holds me in the palms of my Lord and Savior, and all things are possible with God, even peace on earth, good will to men.
The world has turned cold in many strange ways, competing for the love and caring bells of every person’s soul. Despite the darkness, we must persevere to find the light, hope, love, and grace of Christ. I pray tonight that the violence, hatred, anger, vitriol, corruption, greed, and lies of the world will not debase the peace we seek, that men will walk freely and equally, and that everyone’s pursuit of happiness be granted by the One who loves us all. His love will make all things perfect in His time, and the bells will ring out from the very depths of our souls, “Peace on earth, good will to men.”
Anna Hartt
