I wanted to write and thank everyone who contributed in any way to enable what happened last night.
* From Ruth’s amazing decoration of the church to Jonathan’s brilliant leading of our musicians.....
* from the team of those who prepared the church and the candle light to Keith’s careful oversight of the world record attempt...
* from Jill and her team who sorted out the refreshments afterwards to the welcomers and greeters....
* and Sharon and the children’s leaders who set up the lantern factory in the hall beforehand.
Thank you all for making our Christmas celebration so special for everyone who came.
I guess we were all delighted by just how many people came to fill our church last night. So
* thank you also to all who prayed for our carol service and ...
* thank you to all who invited others to come and who delivered leaflets...
* and prayer walked as MAD did delivering leaflets last Sunday evening.
As a minister I am often privileged to hear conversations that others do not.
* So I was encouraged to find quite a number of people in church simply because they had received a leaflet through their door.
* There were others who were with us because they were coming with someone from church.
* Some were joining in the fun of our Christmas celebrations and our record attempt...
* And others who were looking to connect with a local Christian community where their faith might be nurtured.
* Others were there because their group meets in our church and they had responded to our invitation to take part.
* No doubt there are many others who received an invitation or a leaflet and felt drawn to come but for many reasons, some simply practical, couldn’t respond by coming but will probably do so in another way this Christmas time.
Paul writes to the Ephesians ‘From Christ the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.’ I am so conscious this morning of God’s blessing of ‘our offering of our gifts’ to him in the lives of others who were touched as they shared last night with us.
We will gather on Christmas Day next Sunday at 10.30am for a family service.
If Santa ‘brings you a gift you would like to bring to church to show’ then that would be great.
In the meantime, I pray that you would know Christ alongside you and his ‘light’ shining on you this Christmas time.
* Happy Christmas!
David
