Colourful Dreamer

And just like that we are at Advent 4. I don’t feel very ready. That peace and hope and joy are trickling away. It is hard to hold all that Advent offers in all that needs to be done. Maybe that’s the point. This week we have the stories of 2 men. Isaiah tells of Ahaz who was faithless and unwilling to heed the sign of a child born and to trust God to save him. Matthew takes that sign and applies it to Jesus and tells of Joseph who was faithful and did trust the dream – embracing this somewhat difficult situation as an act of the Holy Spirit. He becomes our role model. But I find myself with Ahaz far too often. When we read Matthew, it is helpful to let go of Luke. This is a very different story. No census, no travelling to Bethlehem, no stable or manger. Luke’s focusses on Mary, while Matthew’s is centred around Joseph. It is short and to the point, establishing Jesus’ credentials as “God with us”, the one who saves us from our sins. How do you respond to God is with us? Not all...

We gather this Christmas looking for joy longing for hope holding our grief for what has been and what is and what will be We see a babe lying in a manger bed There we find God present in: Mary’s pain and doubt wonder at the unknown giving birth in this stable cave; Shepherds washed in fear and uncertainty, blinded by angel armies deafening song, calling them on; Joseph’s bewilderment as his simple life takes undefined turns wishing for life as it was, as it should be; mothers wailing gut wrenching despair holding their murdered sons, sacrificed on Herod’s paranoia and resentment; Foreign Magi risky questing and wise searching entering hostile lands looking. We see a babe lying in a manger bed There we find God present in our story our grief Christmas joy. God declares this world and all people worthy For God is with us present utterly committed even now ushering hope and wholeness gif...

Today we gather with Christians all around the world who will light candles and remember loved ones who have died over the last year. We do this because November 1st has for at least 12 centuries been All Saints Day. This is the day Christians have remembered all those who firstly died as martyrs, and then all those great people of faith (saints) who the rest of us look up to and are inspired by. From the twelfth or thirteenth centuries All Souls Day was held on November 2 to remember ALL people of faith, especially those we grieve. Today we remember all those who have gone before us, who have paved the way for us, and especially those we have loved and who loved us, and those who inspire us. As we honour their memory and give thanks for the ways they have blessed us over our lifetimes, we take another step in letting them go, trusting that they now rest in God, as they have always. This year All Souls is particularly poignant. For many 2020 has been a hard year. Life as we knew it...