“Do not be afraid! I bring you good news!”
Angels are fearsome beings, we like to pretty them up and make them look more presentable, but they have a nasty habit of surprising the unsuspecting person and then delivering hard news! It takes a bit of time to work out whether or not it is good!
It is easy to categorise the birth of God’s son as a children’s story, or a fairytale, however, the birth of Jesus was just as real as both yours and my birth. The Census of those times has not withstood the test of time, however, there are documented records that talk about “Jesus called the Messiah” and the incredible things that he taught and did. He was a real and live person, just as we each are.
The story of Jesus’s birth has been romanticised, we conveniently ‘forget’ the gruesome and jealous acts of Herod the then king. We forget the hardship of walking great distances when heavily pregnant, the stress of finding nowhere to sleep, the worry about finances and being out of work -these are all very real difficulties that were experienced by Jesus’ family and by us today. We know about stress and travelling to our families for Christmas, the stress of making sure everything is ready. Jesus’s family would have experienced the same stress, but their family did not have room to put them up, and so they found themselves with no place to stay.
Different parts of the Christmas story will resonate with different people and possibly at different stages of life as well. As we contemplate the true meaning of Christmas let us consider those who are around us and, seek to be good news to them helping to ease a little bit of stress and worry that they carry. Please do pop into your local church or attend one of the services, we will be pleased to see you, we will make you welcome, and if we can ease some of your worry, even if just for a short time we will try,
Grace and peace,
Rev Caroline