On two occasions in Luke 2, we read of Mary treasuring the things she had learned (Luke 2:19, 51) and pondering them. There could be no doubt that the angelic visitation announcing that she would become the mother of Jesus must have been an extraordinary experience. Hers was a pregnancy like no other, and although she had the confirmation of Elizabeth’s unusual pregnancy and her own experience, she must have pondered all that was happening to her over those months of gestation. It was not an ‘ideal’ situation for a teenage girl to find herself in, nor was it ‘ideal’ to have to travel to Bethlehem so close to giving birth and then having to give birth in a stable full of animals. There was much to ponder about during this period in her life.

There was very little that was ‘ideal’ or ‘normal’ about this experience. Dirty, dishevelled shepherds were the first visitors to the Messiah, and perhaps not exactly welcome ones initially, but as Mary listened to their stories of angels, she must have reflected that God was definitely doing something special. Later, as Jesus was circumcised and dedicated to the Lord, Mary encountered another miracle to ponder, the proclamation and prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:22-35).

Simeon had to wait many years for the fulfilment of God’s promise to him that he would see the Messiah, In that respect, Mary’s promise was fulfilled relatively quickly, but Simeon had eyes to see beyond the infant child and talked of a sword piercing Mary’s soul. It probably made little sense to Mary at the time, but as she treasured these words and pondered them, she realised that God was in control of all things and was working out a greater plan than she could at that time see.

We must be like Simeon, alert to God’s ‘nudges’ and willing to wait patiently for what God has promised. He will complete all that He has started and will answer us in ways that perhaps astound and confuse us. Our job is to welcome those He sends into our midst with love and care, even if they are not the ‘ideal’ people and don’t fit into our preconceived ideas and expectations. The call is for us to be alert and aware of what God is doing so that we recognise HIs workings. We don’t want to miss out on anything that God is doing, however unexpected this may be, and in order to perceive God’s action, we need to treasure and ponder all that He does.

Acts 4:12 says salvation is found only in Jesus and there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. Jesus holds a unique place in history (God Almighty entering earth as a human baby) and because of His identity as both fully God and fully human, He continues to hold a unique place in our modern society and in our individual and corporate lives.

Tonight at 6 p.m. we will be holding our carol service, celebrating some of the many names of Jesus, for we believe there is no greater name. His name resounds beyond the stars, as HIllsong sing (‘No Other Name’). Come along to sing carols and take part in games and activities that focus our attention on Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. We look forward to seeing you there!

We all worship something or someone. We may not be religious, so the thought of worship may be alien to us, but if worship is defined as our glad response to what we value the most, it is easy to see that worship can be found in everyone’s lives. We may worship money or work or clothes or people; we may worship at football matches, fashion shows or music concerts. As Matt Redman sings, ‘everybody praises the thing they love/ Everyone announces what they adore.’ (‘One Name Alone’)

The Bible makes it explicit that Jesus, even as a baby, drew worship (Matt 2:11), which in Israel was reserved for God alone. The fact that as an adult He accepted worship was one of the things that infuriated the religious people of the day (see John 9, for example). They couldn’t make the connection between true worship and a human being in front of them.

The Magi don’t seem to have had this problem, perhaps because they came from the east and didn’t have the same cultural baggage that the Jews carried. Ultimately, they were wise because they recognised something of who Jesus was, even as a baby. They recognised him as ‘king of the Jews’ (Matt 2:2) as did Pontius Pilate (Jn 19:19); the Bible goes even further and declares Him ‘king of kings and Lord of Lords’ (Rev 19:16). When we see Jesus in this way, we too will be drawn to worship, and will find ultimate wisdom.

One of the things I love about the Christmas story is how it is totally inclusive. All of society gets to hear about the arrival of Jesus! – from the harassed workers (the innkeeper and the shepherds) to the rich academics (the Magi) to the king (Herod), not to mention how the line between heaven and earth is blurred as angels proclaim the good news and sights are seen that are rarely repeated in the rest of history.

The gospel is good news for everyone, as Rend Collective’s song ‘Rescuer’ makes clear. It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor, illiterate or educated, male or female: Christ came to be the Saviour of the world. John 3:16 tells us that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. There are simply no exceptions to this. It doesn’t matter if we’re disabled or healthy; it doesn’t matter what our nationality is; it doesn’t matter where we live in the world. All we have to do to receive everlasting life is to believe that God sent His Son to save the world.

Christmas reminds us that life isn’t just about the time we spend on earth. Life can go far beyond our earthly lifespan; it can encompass eternity. Christ existed before time; He is the eternal ‘I AM’ (Jn 8:58). He was, and is, and is to come. (Rev 1:8) We can all be included in this redemption story. The only thing that can prevent our inclusion is our refusal to believe.

One of my favourite verses about Jesus is tucked away in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, where he says, ‘Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!’ (2 Cor 9:15) In this letter, Paul urges the Corinthians to be generous in their financial giving because God loves generosity (2 Cor 9:7); He also reminds us that God is a God of rich blessing. (2 Cor 9:8, 11) Jesus becomes our motivation and model for giving. Because God has not withheld His only Son from us, we are urged to give our all to God.

There is a human tendency, however, to like the people who are like us and to give to those we love. Jesus challenges this way of thinking, saying ‘love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you’ (Matt 5:44), going on to say, ‘If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?’ (Matt 5:46-47) Perhaps our greatest Christmas challenge this year is to give to someone undeserving of our time, love or money, because Christ died for us while we were still sinners. (Rom 5:8) He didn’t wait for us to be good and cleaned up before He came to rescue us. He didn’t wait for our gratitude and thanks before He went to Calvary. He came; He loved; He suffered; He died. We’ve received the most incredible gift – let’s pass it on!

One of the most encouraging things for our local churches is the way we work together. Dearne Churches Together is a group of local churches in Thurnscoe, Goldthorpe and Bolton-on-Dearne who work together to serve our local communities. This year has seen the start of ‘Churches Together’ prayer meetings every month, and we will be continuing these in 2018 on Tuesday 9th January (10.30 a.m. at the Salvation Army), on Wednesday 14th February (9.30 a.m. at Thurnscoe Pentecostal Church at Houghton Road Centre in Thurnscoe) and we will have a Day of Prayer in Lent on Friday 16th March (9 a.m. – 9 p.m.) at Furlong Road Methodist Church in Bolton-on-Dearne. Prayer meetings usually last an hour, but on the Day of Prayer, you can pop in at any time between those times and spend time in reflection, prayer and different activities as we think about the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and what that means for us and our communities. Please do join with us for these prayer meetings.

We also host community fun days. We’ll be holding a ‘Love Festival’ on Wednesday 14th February at Houghton Road Centre in Thurnscoe (10.30 a.m. – 2 p.m.) when there will be craft activities, crazy golf, free refreshments and much more as we think about Valentine’s Day and the true meaning of love… and how Jesus demonstrated this at the cross. Matt Redman sings, ‘This is how we know, this is how we know what love is: just one look at the cross’, so come along to find out more at this half-term event.

We are planning a special Good Friday event at different churches, exploring the meaning of the death of our Lord Jesus Christ (Friday 30th March) and also hope to be involved with Big Local Thurnscoe’s spring event, a Dinosaur Day at Phoenix Park on Sunday 15th April (12 noon onwards.) We’ll be doing craft-based activites looking at God’s wonderful creation and also exploring the question ‘Are Christians Dinosaurs?’ Is Christianity outdated and irrelevant to modern society, as dead as the dinosaurs, or do we still have a message of good news for everyone? Further details to follow shortly, but put the dates in your (new 2018) diaries now!

Finally, if you want to keep in touch with all that Dearne Churches Together are planning, why not take a look at our Facebook page or pick up the latest newsletter from church?