If you’re like me and grew up in Baptist churches, you probably remember those old Baptist hymnals. You might remember that we sang a select few out of those hymnals over and over. But if you’re above a certain age, you’ll certainly remember that we always sang the first, second, and fourth stanzas of any hymn. Never the third.

Today, most of us can still remember the words to any of the old standards. But if you want to stump a Baptist, request the third stanza of any hymn. Any. Hymn. It doesn’t matter. The younger ones will resort to Google while the older ones may have to dig up an old hymnal they saved when their churches went to digital and lyrics on a screen.

But every now and then, there’s a gem hiding in the third stanza. A friend posted one such from It Came Upon a Midnight Clear, a very familiar Christmas carol. But the third stanza hit me like it was brand new — probably because it WAS brand new to me:

“O ye, beneath life’s crushing load, whose forms are bending low
Who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow
Look now for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing
O rest beside the weary road and hear the angels sing.”

I love the idea of Christmas Day as a time to rest and hear the angels singing. It may not be feasible for some, but I think we should all at least try to make room to sit and ponder the mystery of Christmas — God became a baby, born to a virgin in a barn, who grew up to be the Savior of the world.