Thought for the week: Advent 2 - Love Have you ever been roped into helping a child with a particularly challenging school project? Someone was asked to help their grandson with making a model for a school art project. The grandson expected that his grandparent would react immediately and miraculously produce materials and the help needed. The grandparent had two options: A) Try to find something in the house that could be used to make the model immediately; B) To think carefully and come up with a plan to buy some materials or spend time collecting paper and making a papier maché model. After a hunt round the house turned up only a small amount of modelling clay, plan B was decided on and materials duly purchased for it. The papier maché took a while to prepare and was very messy, but the wait was worth it. Grandparent and grandchild had great fun making the modelling material and the whole family joined in and made their own models. Though the grandchild had to wait longer, the end result was much more imaginative and creative – it was the result of a loving plan! God has a plan for raising us up, saving and loving us. Sometimes the plan requires patience on our part. We may need to change some of our expectations or preconceived notions. Maybe we could use a different modelling material! Our readings emphasise that God’s plan was and is one of love. It is carefully planned, with messengers and others preparing the way. And the outcome was God sending his son in love for the world. The final part of Zechariah’s song sums the situation up rather nicely: ‘For you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’ That’s surely a loving plan worth waiting for!
Thought for the week: Advent 1 - Hope There is a park in Plymouth with a rather unusual tree in it. Growing out of the ground is the stump of an old tree – it’s at least a metre wide. Many years ago, the tree was cut down and only the stump was left. But somehow, a new fir tree started to grow from it. So now, each year at Christmas nearby residents decorate the tree and have a little celebration together around it. This particular tree that was cut down has become a quite unexpected source of hope as a new one has sprung up from it. In Jeremiah, we hear of God causing ‘a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety’. The ‘righteous Branch’ that is to come is Jesus. As we start Advent, we look back and look forward. We look back and remember all those who waited in hopeful anticipation for the Messiah who would come and save them. Many, like Jeremiah, never lived to see the Messiah. And yet they remained hopeful. We look back and remember Jesus’ birth over two thousand years ago and how a tiny baby was born in less than ideal circumstances, whose parents then fled with him to Egypt to escape a terrible fate. Yet, among all this, the hope spoken of by Jeremiah became a reality. But we also look forward. We look forward in hope to when Jesus will come again and all things will be restored and renewed, when all crying and pain will cease, when all people will come together to worship the Lord. What does that mean in the place and time we find ourselves, between the past and future. Here we also find hope. Just like the fir tree that grew from the stump of the old, dead tree, there are signs of hope all around us – in the ways that we see God at work in our own lives, in the lives of people we know, and in the lives of people we have never met. These might be big or small. What signs of hope have you seen recently?
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, as the song goes. However, I don’t know if you are finding this, but that most wonderful time of the year seems to start earlier and earlier. Christmas stock arrives in the shops in September, and while I was away for October half term, standing in a queue for a till, the lady in front of me declared, “that’s it, all my Christmas shopping is done!”, and my reaction, oh blimey, I haven’t even started to think about it! As I write this on the 6th November, I’ve just heard the first, of what I’m sure will be many, Christmas advert for John Lewis. It is so easy to see Christmas through the lens of commercialism and to lose sight of the real message of Christmas, and the biggest casualty is the season of Advent. However, this year we do have something in common with the secular Advent calendars, because Advent Sunday this year falls on December 1st, so as many children (and now many adults too with the rise of fancy advent calendars) excitedly open that first door, we open the door to the start of Advent in our purple robes as we prepare ourselves for the white joy of Christmas. Every year the Church of England produces Christmas branding for churches to use in their seasonal advertising and you will see this on all our publicity. This year the theme is “Follow the Song, Calm and Bright,” taking a line from that beautiful German carol, Silent Night. The idea behind it is to encourage us to ensure that our Advent season is Calm, so our Christmas can be Bright. As it is so easy to lose Advent in all the busyness of Christmas, I have provided some Advent reflections, one per week which we will post to our social media site, these are written by Revd Dr Anna Creedon. Do spend some time with them each week, reflecting on the message and bringing some calm into this busy time. The Church of England also provide daily reflections, and these can be accessed via their website, or if you use a mobile device on the Church of England Everyday Faith app. Of course there are lots of events and services happening in both our churches during December and we hope you are able to attend them. We start our Advent season at St Mary’s with our Advent Carol Service at 6:30 pm. This is one of my favourite services of the year, as I love the Advent carols. It is a beautifully calm and uplifting introduction to the Advent season and if you have never been I really recommend it. During December, our schools will celebrate with Nativity plays and Christingle services and, on the last day of term, Congleton High School will bring all of Key Stage 3 (years 7, 8 and 9) into church. For some children this may be the only time they ever visit a church. Please pray for Bishop Sam as he leads this service. Live Nativity is returning again by popular demand, and we will welcome families to experience the story of Christmas, as our holy family journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, in search of somewhere safe for Mary’s baby to be born. Along the way they will meet Shepherds, Angels and a rather grumpy Innkeeper. This year Live Nativity is on Monday 16th and Tuesday 17th December and if you would like to join our cast or help with the running of the event please do get in touch, as we always need plenty of helpers. Russell Watson is performing two concerts with us once more this year and we are incredibly grateful to Russell and his team for organising and managing these sell-out concerts again. This busy week is bookended with traditional Carol Services. This year, due to the very generous provision of grass matting on the field by Somerford Chapel, donated by Somerford Village Council, we are able to have a Carol service at the chapel without the risk of all our cars needing to be pulled off by tractors. This service will be at 2:30 pm on Sunday 15th December. St John’s are also having their Carol Service on Sunday 15th at 6pm and St Mary’s Carol Service is on Sunday 22nd at 6:30 pm. All Saints Parish in Congleton also offer a “Christmas Without a Loved One” service, taking place at St Peter’s Church on Sunday 22nd December at 3:30pm; do ask me if you would like more information about this service. On Christmas Eve we are holding our Crib services, with just a little bit of Christmassy mayhem led by Bev and myself; we will be at St John’s at 3:30 pm and, if you missed that, we are doing it all again at 5 pm at St Mary’s. Holy Communion for Christmas will be at 10 pm at St John’s led by Jeff Cuttell and at 11:30 pm at St Mary’s, led by Archdeacon Jane. On Christmas morning Andrew and I will be leading an All-Age Family service at St Mary’s at 10 am. Do bring along your new presents as Andrew and I love to have a good look at what everyone has received from Santa. Wherever and how ever you celebrate the season, I pray that your Advent will be Calm and your Christmas Bright. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, Steph.
Our journey begins at the farm where we are greeted by the Centurion who orders us to go to Bethlehem. We follow the star through the village in the footsteps of Mary, Joseph and their faithful donkey so that we too become part of the story of the first Christmas. We are guided on the way by some smelly shepherds and angels encourage us to keep going. A grumpy inn-keeper tells us there is no room at the inn. Don’t let him put you off … Bethlehem is in sight! We sing carols to keep our spirits up and anticipate with excitement who we shall find at the end of our journey. The stable scene in church awaits us and we watch the arrival of the three Kings as they bring their gifts. Once again, the age-old story is complete and we raise our voices together to welcome the Christ-child. As we refresh ourselves with hot chocolate or mulled wine and a mince pie, we can rest assured that we have remembered and celebrated the real reason for the season. Pre-booking is essential for this event. Tickets are available online using the QR codes in the picture or by clicking the date link below to the online booking page.For 16th DecemberFor 17th DecemberBooking opens 1st November 2024Adult tickets are £6 each, under16’s tickets are £3 each A Family ticket for two adults and two children is £15 Small booking fees apply. Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable If you are unable to book online, tickets may be purchased at Astbury church after any 11am Sunday service.
