I AM pretty confident all of us will have heard news this year that has affected us.
Some will have been good and some bad, some will have affected us personally and some in a more distant but yet still profound way.
Personal, community, national and international news will all have shaped our year in different ways.
In the middle of the events of the first Christmas there were some hardworking shepherds getting on with their work, most likely having a very ordinary day, when they were interrupted by some incoming news.
The angels said ‘Do not be afraid, for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all people’.
Whatever types of news have affected us this year, the message of Christmas, the birth of Jesus, invites us not to fear, but to know that God is with us, even in the most complicated of times.
Joy is at the heart of the message of Christmas and is something that is often experienced in the most unexpected moments and unexpected ways.
A simple act of kindness, a moment of peace or an expression of love can result in joy and that has a way of strengthening us.
I pray that whatever news has shaped your year, that this Christmas there will be moments of joy that will give you strength, courage and hope for the year ahead.
Rev Laura Handy
Team Rector of the Saltway Team.
