The story is told

That in the darkest night of the year

At the end of a long journey

In the lowest of places

To a weary father and an exhausted mother

A child was born

a savior.

There came sweet joy

In the midst of hardship

There came richness unmeasurable

In the midst of poverty

There came a cup overflowing

In the midst of want

There came a light

(like a star

like good news to awestruck ears

like angel voices

singing hope and courage

and faith and promise

and justice and freedom

to a desperate people)

In the midst of darkness.

When our souls enter a dark night

When our lives become a long journey

When our spirits are brought low

When we need a new birth to save us from old pain

We tell the story

necessary, effective, believed, and proved

By every star in the sky

By every lamp in every window

By every candle on every table

By the glimmer in every eye

and the glow in every heart.