Episode #243 — Her music is always a blessing with it’s gentle but unafraid look at the intersection of faith and life, but – somehow – this folk-pop pioneer captures our ears and hearts even more at Christmas.
Sara Groves just released her new Christmas record Joy of Every Longing Heart, and her fresh take on “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” has been blessing so many. She shares how the treasured message of the Christmas classic touches her.
“There’s such a plaintive cry, and I think we can all identify with that when we look at ourselves. I can look at certain parts of my life and say, ‘Lord, You did do this in me. I can see that. I’m better in this regard.'”
“But then we look at other parts of our life, and it just feels like – when will that ever change or be better? Or when will I have relief from this experience? Or any number of things and relationships that are broken? We look around the world and see a certain way of being in the world, and we hope – I hope – that way doesn’t win. You see the way people are addressing each other and are engaging with their brother, and it just feels like, ‘How long, Lord? Until we beat our weapons into plowshares? When are all these promises going to come?‘”
In the waiting and the longing comes a shared hope.
“So I think in that song is this plaintive cry – a longing for things to be set right. And we all can see, at every level of our lives we can see that experience. It speaks to what it means to be human.”
Sara Groves is the much beloved recording artist whose new Christmas record is available now. It’s called Joy of Every Longing Heart.
Get the latest episode of On the Road delivered straight to your favorite device when you subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts today!
On the Road with Sara Groves
