Happy Christmas

¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was with God in the beginning.
 ³Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴In him was life, and that life was the light of men. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
 ⁶There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. ⁸He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. ⁹The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
 ¹⁰He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. ¹¹He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. ¹²Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—¹³children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.
 ¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1

Going home for Christmas

I just found out that I'm not working on Boxing Day - I had the wrong rota! I'm so excited, I get to spend two days at home with my family. On Christmas Day I'll be with G&G (my dad's parents) and on Boxing Day I'll be with Mum, Dad and Tori. I'm looking forward to spending some time relaxing with them. Only one more week to go!

Have you ever seen God?

Published in MCC North London's newsletter, 9th December 2009.
 

But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of God's divine being.
Romans 1:20-22, The Message

Have you ever seen God in something unexpected? Have you ever exchanged a smile with a stranger in the street and felt as though you forged an indestructible friendship?

I was struck the other day by all the incredible, diverse, wonderful things in creation that point us to God. Whether it’s the smile of a child on the bus, or the way that the sunlight shines through the trees onto the buildings you see every day. Sometimes it is the small reminders that make us remember who God is and what God does for us.

When that happens, it is right to give thanks and praise to God. It’s the time we should take a deep breath and say in our hearts what a faithful, awesome God we have. Those moments can be lifesaving, they are sent to us to remind us that we are blessed and loved. That the awesome God who created the universe is also watching over our daily lives. I don’t think I will ever be able to get my head around that and I love that beautiful mystery.

In this advent season, we are looking forward to the clearest manifestation of God’s love; the anniversary of the birth of the Son of God – Emmanuel, God with us, the Messiah – we must also be attuned to the miracle of daily life. Give thanks to God; God’s love endures forever!

Sometimes all you need...

...is to let your inner child run amok.

The church Christmas party was this evening and I had so much fun throwing wrapping paper (from Pass the Parcel, of course!) around the room, and singing dodgy karaoke songs with The Wife. It was brilliant, and we had a lovely drink in the pub around the corner afterwards (one of my favourites, although at least one of the guys I was with was miffed that I took him to a straight pub!), and just had a lovely evening.

Work tomorrow, and then the Second Sunday of Advent service. I'm looking forward to it; I'll be celebrating communion.

Today I knit...

...a gauge swatch!

My first ever, to make sure that the gorgeous Sweetheart sweater from Domiknitrix will fit me. As usual, knitting a smaller size on the waist than bust; the joys of making my own clothes!

It's particularly exciting since I realised that a pound shop in Islington sells yarn for £1.49/ball, which means I am knitting this sweater for less than £10. Win.