Stephen spoke this morning on God’s hand in our life. Using a picture of a seedling being held in someone’s hand, he spoke about understanding that God is active in our lives and is there to guide us and direct us.

Christianity is not like a Scouts’ badge, where we can earn God’s favour by our activities. It is a whole way of life where we follow God’s plans and purposes, where our lives become part of a larger picture (rather like how a slip road merges with the motorway and becomes part of the larger road.)

Christmas proves to us God’s active role in human history. Just as Jesus was taken to Egypt to escape Herod’s evil plot to kill Him, so we are called out of enemy captivity. God’s hand is on us, leading and guiding us. We need God’s nourishment, just as the seedling needs nutrients from the soil to grow. We can move forward in God’s plan and be secure in His guidance and provision.

Today I’ve been meditating on Mark 14:1-11, the account of the anointing of Jesus by a woman at the house of Simon the leper at Bethany, an account which Jesus tells us will be recounted wherever the gospel is preached.

Whenever I read this account, I am challenged. It’s a story of reckless extravagance. ‘Reckless’ is defined as ‘without thinking or caring about the consequences of an action’ or ‘heedless’ or ‘careless’. I don’t think the woman cared about her reputation or about what others thought of her actions. She just wanted to do something for Jesus because He had done so much for her. I am not sure recklessness fits into my personality traits and so I am threatened by it.

‘Extravagance‘ is defined as ‘lack of restraint in spending money or use of resources’ or ‘unrestrained excess’. Apart from perhaps at Christmas, when we allow ourselves the indulgence of being ‘extravagant’, it’s not usually something in our Western society which is applauded. If you’ve been brought up on the Protestant work ethic or are frugal by nature, extravagance is something which seems inherently sinful!

But Jesus unequivocally commends this woman’s actions. The disciples and others condemned her, criticising and rebuking her harshly: ‘Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.’ (Mark 14:4-5) They may well have been speaking reaonably – and how we like to appear reasonable and rational, justifying our actions with careful words and sensible suggestions! But Jesus was not offended by reckless extravagance in the way that we are. ‘She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.’ (Mark 14:8)

Part of me wonders what happened to the gifts brought by the Wise Men, which also included myrrh. Part of me is afraid of what reckless extravagance looks like today, in my own life. How do I show my devotion for God? What does He mean to me? How can I demonstrate that with my daily living? Do I do what I can or do I live with a safety net reassuringly underneath me? Do I tithe because it leaves me with more than I give? What does reckless extravagance look like in 2012? What will it look like in 2013?

Do I care more for my repuation and what others think of me than what Jesus thinks of me? Do I hold on to what I have, afraid to lose it, or am I willing to let go and find that Jesus gives so much more than I could ever hold on to in my own strength? I don’t think the woman regretted her reckless extravagance. She did what she could. And wherever the gospel is preached, she challenges us to do the same: to love extravagantly, without counting the cost, without holding on to anything.

There will be no midweek meeting this week, so the next service at church will be on Sunday 30th December at the usual times of 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Don’t forget the New Year’s Day party, starting at 4 p.m. As Mark commented, “this is where the real games will be!” We enjoy a buffet meal together and then a variety of games. It’s the ideal time to bring along friends and family members, so do come if you can.

Don’t forget also that January is our month of prayer and fasting (though not at the New Year’s Day party, obviously!) You can indicate on the prayer board when the best time for you to pray is and we will then have a whole chain of pray-ers (and prayers) for the whole of January as we seek God’s will for the way forward in 2013.

Normal services resume in January. Don’t forget the family service on Sunday 6th January at 6 p.m. on the theme of ‘Divine Clothes’.

In the meantime, have a truly blessed Christmas and take time to unwrap more of God’s gifts to you as you read His word and spend time with Him.

Lest you think that in my descriptions of the carol service so far there has been no mention of carols, we did also sing carols! Following the community carol service on Friday, we had to move all the musical equipment (drums, keyboard, amplifiers, pedal boards, microphones etc.) back to our building and get ready for the carol service there.

We sang a range of carols throughout:
* Joy to the World
* In the Bleak Midwinter
* What Child Is This?
* O Come, All Ye Faithful

We also performed a Kutless song called ‘This is Christmas’:

“Remember how the story goes,
God’s gift was wrapped in swaddling clothes,
Beneath the star, one great and holy night.
The shepherds heard the angels sing,
The wise man brought an offering,
Peace on Earth began in Bethelethm
Have we lost the reason that we celebrate each year?

This is Christmas,
It’s all about the Saviour wrapped in a manger.
This is Christmas,
Because of Jesus Christ!
This is Christmas,
Because of Christ!
Because of Christ!”
Kutless,’This is Christmas’

We also got to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ twice:

The text for the carol service sermon is found in 2 Corinthians 9:15 (‘Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!’) During the evening, we explored the Christmas story through a variety of readings:

We also had another gift to unwrap:

Each layer revealed a gift that God has given us:

Some of the gifts God has given us were explored:
1) Grace
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.”(Ephesians 2:8-9)
We don’t earn God’s grace, but receive it freely as we do with any gift.

2) Eternal life
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
The reason we need a gift from God is because life has been messed up and we can’t find our way back to the God who made us and loves us on our own. Because of the wrongdoing of every person, because there is sin in our hearts even before we actually do anything wrong, what will come to us as a wage, as the rightful consequence of how we live, is death. Christmas shows us the start of God’s rescue plan, the arrival of His Son, Jesus, whose sacrifice for our sins leads us to eternal life.

3) Redemption & forgiveness
“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us.” (Ephesians 1:7-8)
We can be forgiven and can have a new life. Jesus has bought us back, paid a ransom for us, so that we can enter into a new relationship with God without any of the baggage of our old way of life. We are free from sin, completely forgiven by a gracious and loving God.

4) Peace with God
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom 5:1)
The angels proclaimed “on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.” (Luke 2:14) Despite the wars and lack of peace even today, God offers us primarily peace with Him which leads to us becoming peace-makers and spreading that peace in the world around us.

5) Hope
“In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)
Romans 15:13 says that God is the God of hope. Because He is the God of hope, He is able to give hope to us. He says we can ‘overflow with hope’. He says that the hope He gives us will not disappoint us or put us to shame (Romans 5:5) That hope goes beyond the now and extends into life beyond this life on earth to eternal life that can never end. Paul says that if we only have hope for this life, we are to be pitied (1 Cor 15:19), but we are reminded in Titus 3:7 that we have the hope of eternal life. The hope God gives us means we never give up or despair, even when things may not seem to be going well for us. The hope of salvation is like a helmet to us (1 Thess 5:8), protecting our minds and thoughts. Christmas is God’s reminder to us that when things seem utterly bleak and without any hope, God is able to step into the situation and change things around. We may not know what 2013 holds for us, but we can enter the New Year with hope because the God of hope is with us.

6) Glory
Ultimately, God just doesn’t give us peace, joy, love and hope. The message of Christmas is that He gives us Himself and that means there is the hope of glorious things to come. Col 1:27 tells us “The mystery in a nutshell is just this: Christ is in you, so therefore you can look forward to sharing in God’s glory.” When we receive Christ as Saviour, He comes to live in us. Christmas is all about God’s indescribable gift of Jesus and we were urged to unwrap this gift daily to find out more about the life God gives us and the glorious things He promises us.

The theme of the carol service was ‘Christmas Unwrapped’, so it was only fair that people had presents to unwrap during the service.

God’s gift to us is based on His knowledge of us; He knew we needed a Saviour and couldn’t save ourselves! These presents were also based on personal knowledge!

Mince pies for Mark:

Pringles for the girls:

Maltesers for Gillian (and not for Stephen!):

Stephen did get extra extra hot Peri-peri sauce, though!:

Battenburg cake for Mark:

Mayonnaise for Emily:

A pork pie for our guest bassist, Mark:

A fruit salad for Pat (the healthy option!):

Sweets for the children:

And finally, God’s gift to us all, unwrapped during the sermon: