Creative-Sunday || Oh come, Oh come Emmanuel (cover)

Anyway, the big day I had been waiting and prepping for finally happened, and now it's done. Whew, what a relief! Despite how chaotic things got while we were scrambling to pull it all together, I'm glad our Christmas carol service at church turned out nicely in the end.

You know what time of year it is, right? It's Christmas Eve! Earlier today we had our Carol service. I actually missed all of the main rehearsal because I had to be at school - didn't want to risk being marked absent for the test they had scheduled.

Even with school and my other commitments with Zealy and Dreemport, I managed to carve out some time in my packed schedule to practice three Christmas solo songs. Out of those, I picked one to share for the Hive Learners #Creative-Sunday prompt this week. The song isn't available online - It was purchased my my church's choir coordinator and sent to me. But I pulled the instrumental accompaniment from Moises AI which worked nicely.

Out of the three songs I sang, "Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel" was first up on my setlist. I've always loved the lyrics, which have this sense of hopeful longing as people wait for Jesus to come. And the minor key melody fits the solemn, thoughtful mood of Advent perfectly.

As I rehearsed over the weeks before the service, I spent time reflecting on lines like "Oh come, oh come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel." The whole song represents the nation of Israel crying out for a savior to rescue them from hardship and oppression. It's like a plea for God's light to burst through the darkness, for the ancient prophecies to come true with Jesus' birth.

Singing this as a solo in front of everyone was a moving experience, honestly. As I sang, I tried to pour the full weight of emotion from the lyrics into the melody. Looking out at the congregation, I saw people nodding thoughtfully or closing their eyes in prayer as they listened. When I hit the high climactic notes near the end, it gave me chills - felt like when voices were lifted straight to heaven.

After the service, so many people came up and complimented my performance of "Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel." They said my solo really helped create a thoughtful, reverent mood for the entire service. I was glad I could contribute something meaningful through my music and see it resonating in people's hearts.

All in all, singing these centuries-old hymns again reminded me why Christmas music matters so much this time of year for many Christians. The lyrics and melodies direct our focus back to the core spiritual meaning of the season in a truly unique way. Whether I'm listening to carols or singing them myself, Christmas music fills me up with hope and joy as we celebrate "God with us" - Emmanuel.