What three words would you choose for Christmas?
Presents/ Tinsel/ tree or maybe pudding/cake/crackers. I’m sure you would have your own version. It’s my first Christmas in Coventry and these past few months I’ve been finding my way around, visiting people and churches and community projects, hospitals, hospices prisons and schools - it has been delightful. But even with a satnav there have been some fun moments and learning to use the ring road has been a special challenge all of its own. In some places they have given me the latest way to find them by giving me the what three words for their place - wherever I happen to be going that day.
Mostly it’s been fine but there have been some cul de sacs, some completely wrong turns and occasionally I have had to ‘phone a friend’ to work out where I actually need to be.
Finding our direction in life can be a bit like that. The world is a confusing place, sometimes it’s really hard to find the right next turn or the best way to go especially if we are heading somewhere we have never been before or we are on our own in a situation.
There are a lot of words at Christmas, adverts telling us what we should need or want, images of the perfect family in matching pyjamas and dogs opening their festive stocking but what if the message is a whole lot simpler than we realise. In the bible the life storis of Jesus, the gospels tell us that there were just three words that God wanted to tell us through that very first Christmas His name (that’s the baby Jesus) will be called Immanuel which means God with us.
However challenging life might be and whatever direction we are trying to find or head towards, we are invited to find our place in the world through these three simple words - God with us. That means we are never alone, it means we can know the forgiveness God offers and we can always have a fresh start wherever we are and whatever we have done.
As we come to Christmas this year we may not have everything the way we want it, it may be that the troubles in the world weigh heavy on our hearts it may there are issues in our families or with our friends, but the truth is that we don’t need to try and find the be perfect Christmas instead we are invited to know the truth of God with us.
So however you are spending the coming days and I pray it’s a joyful time, as we seek to find our way this Christmas and through the year ahead – may you know that he is Immanuel God with us – he promises to lead and guide us as we trust in him today and for all our days to come
Amen
Bishop Sophie delivered her Christmas message on the Vic Minet show on BBC CWR on 22nd December at 11.40. Listen here.