Tuesday, Dec 4th, was our annual Campus Carols & Celebration in the St George's Centre.
As always, scrumptious refreshments were on offer prior to the service.
This year we shaped our service around the fact that we are in the middle of Disability History Month.
In addition to our usual carols and readings we had a lovely lady, Karen, who signed everything for the deaf. Karen was wonderfully accommodating and easy to work alongside.
We also had the pleasure of inviting the Music Man Project to join us and sing one of their songs - 'Love Shine a Light'. Music Man is about education, enjoyment and performance for the learning disabled. Thank you Sarah & team for all that you added to our service.
My message for the season focused on LIGHT. Not in the scientific sense, “electromagnetic radiation within a certain portion of the electromagnetic
spectrum”. Nor simply the practical sense, “the brightness that
let’s you see things.” But light in a spiritual sense ...
LIGHT as
ILLUMINATION, as TRUTH - Illumination allows
us a greater understanding of something. In English we use the idiom to ‘shed
light on something … which is about giving or receiving greater
clarity, increased understanding. It’s about a security in knowing what is
true.
LIGHT
as COMFORT - Not comfort in the
sense of everything being easy, but a comfort that actually goes beyond human
understanding. A comfort you can experience when all around you appears to be
in turmoil.
LIGHT
as HOPE -
Do
you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or
weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like
eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
ISAIAH 40:28-31
There are many other people to thank ... Paul, from the St George's Centre, who is always so friendly and helpful. Chris, who helped with all things techno and beyond my under-standing :-) Arun, who played organ so beautifully as people were arriving, who sang and helped in different ways, despite it being his 21st birthday!!! Aiste, who decorated the tree and managed to serve up 14 bottles of mulled fruit punch!!! Last, but not least, thanks to Lorraine from Medway Foodbank, who played piano, kept me calm, and was able to tell people more about the work of Foodbank - an unbelievably, worthy, local cause. A ministry that has helped some of our Medway students who have found themselves in financial crisis.
Christmas is NOT
about Santa, or decorating trees or giving cards & presents ... though those things are not bad. It certainly isn't about spending
too much money, or eating & drinking too much. Christmas is one of
three pivotal events in the Christian calendar and the essence of Christmas is
the person of Jesus - it’s about the birth of the Christ-child. In the Gospel of John in the New Testament, Jesus says, “I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life”
Later in the same
Gospel Jesus says, “if you hold to my teaching you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
