First Baptist Church of Herndon

Who is the new kid?

Linda Soller | Dec 24, 2012

I purchased a new Christmas CD this year to listen to while driving in my car. Since I have been watching “The Voice” on TV I decided to get Blake Shelton’s new CD called “Cheers, it’s Christmas.” I liked it immediately because it is easy to sing along with the arrangements of the songs he included on the CD. I am all about singing along. Song five was unfamiliar to me. It is called “There’s A New Kid In Town” written by Keith Whitley, Don Cook, and Curly Putman.  It must be hard to write a new song for Christmas. How do you put a new spin on such a familiar story? When these gentlemen wrote their song in 1985 I seriously doubt if they ever expected an event like what we as a nation just experienced with the shootings in Newtown, CT. Even so I find the lyrics to be haunting. The song addresses the wise men coming with their gifts. They ask an old man where the new king might be. He doesn’t know but says, “there’s a new kid in town and he is lying in a manager down the road.”

If you watch the news there is much talk about gun control, ammunition control, mental health issues, warning signs, and so on. Today on the news I heard it said that we as a nation have unfortunately been down this path before but somehow this time it feels different. This time is feels pivotal. This time we hear the word enough coming from people’s mouths, enough violence, enough acting out our anger, enough making excuses why we can’t fix the problems.  The timing of the event so close to Christmas seems to make it feel worse because we generally associate the holidays with such joy. It feels like a time when all things are possible, a time of miracles.

Not so very long ago there were 20 new kids born to this world who are no longer with us. They came in to the world full of promise and potential. They were loved and grew and lived in a small community where they felt safe. They were new kids in town and no one knew what they might one day become, but they brought joy to their families. Jesus was a new kid in town himself. Only Mary and Joseph and a handful of people had an inkling of what he would accomplish. He also brought joy and hope and promise. His life and death made a difference in the world. I truly believe that the lives and deaths of the 26 people in Newtown will make a difference too, but it starts with each of us. How will you answer when someone asks you, who is the new kid?

Merry Christmas and Have a great week :o) Linda