Become New with John Ortberg 15. The Christmas Song from the Appalachian Trail
12 snips
Dec 19, 2025 This Christmas episode dives into the haunting beauty of 'I Wonder as I Wander,' a carol born from hardship. John Ortberg explores how suffering can draw people closer to God. He shares the poignant story behind the song, emphasizing its connection to ordinary lives. Insights into gender differences in sharing struggles offer a unique perspective. Listeners are encouraged to bring their burdens to God, fostering a sense of community through shared pain and finding wonder amid life's challenges.
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Trouble As A Meeting Place
- Ortberg suggests troubles can act as bridges rather than just barriers, creating meeting places with others and with God.
- He frames suffering as integral to the incarnation and the Christmas story.
Origin Of 'I Wonder As I Wander'
- John Ortberg recounts John Jacob Niles hearing a ragged, impoverished girl sing a mournful carol in the Appalachians during the Depression.
- That encounter produced the carol "I Wonder as I Wander," born from poverty and lament.
Incarnation With The Ordinary
- The song emphasizes Jesus coming for "poor, ornery people," highlighting his identification with ordinary, inadequate people.
- Ortberg notes the incarnation deliberately locates God among the ragged and obscure.
