It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Even though the shops have had Christmas stock in for several weeks now that Halloween and Bonfire Night are over they are gearing up for Christmas along with their adverts on television, although there is Black Friday at the end of November.
As I’m preparing this article, we have had the first covering of snow and the temperature has dropped. I hope that you are managing to stay warm. If you have been affected by the loss of the winter fuel payment then don’t forget that Westerhope Methodist Church is registered as a warm space on a Monday morning from 10.00 am to 11.30am. It’s not just the refreshments that people enjoy - they also come for the fellowship with one another.
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Having checked my diary, it’s five weeks today (I’m preparing this on 20th November) so it will be here before we know it. Are you ready or are you someone who waits until the last minute? Or does someone else in the family organise things for you?
Each year I find it harder to think of presents to give to family and friends. It’s very different from when I was growing up and you only got presents when it was your birthday or Christmas and, often, they were not just toys but practical things.
As you know Beech Hill visit the Church at Christmas and each year they are asked to write something based on a topic such as a journey like the one Mary and Joseph undertook. The shepherds and the wise men had to journey to the manger at Bethlehem. One year the theme was ‘Follow the star’. This year I’ve asked them to write about their best present ever and why. I’m sure that I won’t have heard of some of the items but I’m also hoping that there are some simple things chosen by the pupils asked to read what they have written.
I wonder what you would choose as your best present ever? I have a photograph of me on Christmas morning proudly showing two presents that I had received (a hairdryer and the film Grease soundtrack album). I also remember the year that some people in my class got televisions for their bedroom. I still have the bedside cabinet and lamp but I wonder how many of them still have their televisions?
As Christians we believe the gift of Jesus, born as a baby, a long way from his parent’s home was the greatest gift that God has given us. It’s that gift that we celebrate each Christmas. At Christmas we can feel guilty when we receive an unexpected gift from someone because we haven’t got a present to give in return or their gift to us is more valuable than the one that we have given them. In November we pay homage to those who have laid down their lives for us in World War I and subsequent wars. We can’t repay them for what they did just as we can’t repay God for the gift of Jesus who also went on to sacrifice his own life for ours. However, Christina Georgina Rossetti in her Christmas Carol ‘In the bleak mid-winter’ encourages us all to do our part by giving our heart.
So, whether we receive the best present this Christmas or not let’s give the gift of love, hope and kindness because they will be remembered long after the other presents have been cast aside, forgotten or broken.
God bless,
Lynda