Advent Concluding

This weekend past marked for me the final step towards Christmas.   The last weekend before Christmas here is always the Nativity service, and that in itself lends challenges to the role of minister.   Yet the day is always a day of contrasts as we move from Nativity to Communion at the close of the morning service, and then spend an hour in the afternoon thoughtfully encountering "Blue Christmas".

So what challenges can a simple Nativity play send the way of a minister?

In recent years it has been good to have a non-Sunday School person in charge of the Nativity.   They have coached the children in their lines; thought about stage direction; cast the whole thing. And for the most part it works well and I need have very little to do with it, except smile sweetly at the end and say how good it was.  

This year involved new challenges though, like the suggestion that perhaps the stage could be put up prior to worship of last week's service - thus allowing the cast to immediately rehearse at the close of worship.   I fell back to the minister's usual stance of "I'll think about it" and walked away to mutter under my breath.   Two days later those who asked suggested themselves that it was unrealistic - once they realised that there was a baptism and three professions of faith that morning.   I think the thought of ministers mountaineering across staging to the various parts of the chancel used during such a service was too much.

Having found a version of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" that spoke of the star's importance in the Nativity, I thought it would be nice for the two ministers to have a little fun at the Nativity service and so we dueted.   I however forgot that my own child would take umbridge at the incorrect words being sung.   The child proceeded to cry and put her fingers in her ears at what I'm told was a rather good rendition of the nursery rhyme.   Said child was duly removed from church once her mother had finished singing while the other minister carried on with worship.   Mrs. Claus has since phoned the house requesting a conversation with the child and the child is now aware they are close to the naughty list and are attempting various versions of "good and kind".   (For those wondering how such a feat may happen, it involved text messaging your home phone, and hoping the BT voice will come good for you.)

Blue Christmas functions as an alternative to the merriment of the earlier service, and several people take advantage of the different atmosphere.   This is our 8th year, and while numbers are never huge, for the few who come it offers an opportunity to reflect on those they miss and the situations they struggle with.   It often functions with where I am with being fed up with the season, as I still struggle with this need to celebrate Christmas before the event.   So yesterday we reflected on being "exiled" from the communities that we seek to be part of, because we cannot share the values of those communities.   (My congregation know all to well that Christmas trees before the 24th is an outrage to me - although they also recognise that to keep my small people happy it goes up 5 days before because they cannot understand why we need to be different.)   There is something precious about waiting, about being creative in how we spend that time, and yet we live in a world where everything has to happen now.

This week heralds a Carol Celebration, and then Christingle, Watchnight and Christmas Day.   Christingle has become one of the favourite services here.    A good number of the community come to share in the expectation and the bathing in twinkling light.   My story for the evening is searched out, and I think the only thing still to do is make sure we have enough candle lighters.   Then in the first verse of "Away in a Manger"   in the twinkling darkness as the children sing, I will have my annual sob.

Watchnight is a work in progress.   Prayers are written, however I need to settle down at some point in the next two days and put down some ideas for a sermon.

And Christmas Day, while I will be in attendence, I will arrive just in time with my family and sit and let my colleague lead the show.   Finally the waiting will have ended, and the gift of God's love will be opened among us again.  

Hopefully the reminder of naughty list will not needed again and we will get to the event in good spirits.

In the meantime I am continuing in the waiting, hoping that creativity might strike.

Gaudete

This year has been full of wonderful moments when I have been so encouraged by where I am and the people I serve.   Today was no less an eperience.

We marked "Gaudete" with an infant baptism and with three professions of faith and admissions to membership.   All of those making promises are people who have become part of the life and worship around our building, and very much welcomed by the people who were already here.

To conclude the celebrations one of those making their profession asked me to mark the back of her birth certificate with her profession of faith date.   How humbling to complete the cycle of promises made over 40 years ago!.

A full service was brought to an end with an opportunity to drink tea and eat mince pies - during which I discovered there are three baptisms to open the new year with, as well as those who are thinking of ways that they can better serve the congregaion by giving a little more of their time.

With still two Sundays of the year to go, I feel very blessed at the good year I have enjoyed here, and look forward to marking God's love amongst within the next fortnight.

Preparing for the Preparation

For a few years now I have taken the first week in December, including the second Sunday of Advent, as a holiday.   I've done so for a number of reasons.   In part it is to give myself a little rest before heading into the last three weeks of relentless parties, mince pies and Christmas carols.   It is also an opportunity to do most of the Christmas shopping, and therefore know it will not have to be hurriedly fitted in around other things.   This also tends to be the week though when my husband is involved in lighting an "am-dram" production, and my being on holiday means that there are no evening meetings and so the children are assured that their other parent will be home for the evening.

Those who know me well know that I am not very good at taking holidays around the manse.    I can't resist peaking at the caller display to see who is phoning.   If there are the odd e-mails that appear, I will respond to them.

This inability to rest completely has been made worse this week by members of the congregation failing to read the intimations.   Mrs. Gerbil was exploring the question of church notices being read out a few weeks ago, and I responded there.   But my experience this week has further reinforced why the intimations should be read even if there is a printed sheet.  

Normally I read all the intimations, or at the very least draw attention to them.   I've done so for most of my ministry, and do so for two good reasons.   One is that people tend to take in what they hear, and are therefore more likely to then read the church notices.   But I aslo do it because we should never assume literacy no matter how middle class a congregation.    It was good to find out though that in terms of disability legislation this was good practice.

This Sunday however was busy with our Uniformed Organisations present in church, and therefore I skipped reading out that I would be on holiday.   So this week I've had phonecalls, people turning up at the door, and plenty emails to keep me busy.   To make it all the more amusing, my phone message is very clear about what you should do and who you should contact.   And yet, many have felt that they should just leave a message anyway.   Of course the message couldn't possibly mean you!

Perhaps they just know me well.   As in this week of rest, I've done a little Advent and Christmas church preparation as well.   For in the evenings when the children have gone to bed I've managed to pick hymns and readings and sort Christmas cards - as well as be mum and sew sequins to a tutu.   This weekend I plan to find some Advent worship somewhere else, and enjoy the invasion of Christ into the hustle and bustle of ordinary people trying to find space for the extraordinary.