Several years ago I was talking to a friend who told me about a work colleague in his office. Apparently when this man writes freehand his ‘r’s look like ‘s’s. One of the quirky results of this is that when he wants to write “Merry Christmas” on his Christmas cards it comes out as “Messy Christmas!”

This year are we looking forward to a Merry Christmas or a Messy Christmas?

True, we have more opportunities to be with our families and friends this Christmas and Carol and Christingle services are going to take place in our parish that didn’t happen last year. In many respects we have come a long way in 2021 and let’s give thanks to God that this is so. On the other hand the pandemic is still with us when quite honestly we wish it wasn’t, we had all hoped that COVID 19 would be a thing of the past by now. And of course there is still that one big question living in the back all of our minds,

In the middle of all of this messiness and uncertainty, where is God?

In Luke 1 v 26-38 we read the familiar story of the angel Gabriel and Mary in conversation with one another. Gabriel comes to Mary and tells her that she is blessed. He then reveals to her that she will have a child by the Holy Spirit, His credentials will be fairly impressive and that she is to name Him Jesus. Now you may have noticed that when God says that He is going to do something or if He makes a promise anywhere in the Bible we can be absolutely certain that He will do as He has said and that He will keep that promise. As a young person said at a youth service I was speaking at a few years ago, “When God makes a promise He doesn’t put His hands behind His back and cross His fingers!” When God says that He will be with us in the messiness, uncertainty and pain of our lives He means it and we can faithfully take Him at His word.

However it is not just Gabriel who has something to say in this passage; we also have Mary who is not in the least bit afraid to ask Gabriel the question, “How can this be?” It is not that Mary has no faith in God and in His promises: she does. It’s just that this particular promise seems so…… well, unlikely! And of course we are hearing the story in hindsight and we know how it will all end. If we didn’t, would our response have been very different from that of Mary?

I wonder how many of us are looking at the state of play in our world at the end of 2021 whilst at the same time thinking about God’s promises and wondering, "How can this be?" How can God’s promises possibly be fulfilled in such a messy world as this? The pandemic is still with us despite the vaccination programme, facemasks are becoming mandatory in shops and on public transport once again and over the last few weeks a new word has entered into our vocabulary; Omicron! And of course all of this doesn’t even cover the state of the world in general with on going issues such as wars, refugees, world hunger, climate change and international terrorism to name a few.

And yet God’s promise to Mary, incredible as it must have appeared at the time came true and a child was born into this messy, broken world, a child who has had such an impact on our world that here we are in Kidderminster in 2021 still meeting in His name Sunday by Sunday and worshipping Him. And we can be assured that as we leave 2021 and enter into 2022 God will always be with us fulfilling His promises in us as we journey with Him into uncertain days ahead.

And so as a parish let us be prepared to go forward into 2022 holding our questions and uncertainties about the future in our minds but with a resolve to never let these thoughts override our ultimate conviction that when God says He will be with us and lead us through our journey no matter what the circumstances He will abide by those promises.

May we take the opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Messy Christmas and a very blessed and peaceful Messy New Year.

Robert and David