Monthly Newsletter

Dear Church Friends

I’m writing this on the eve of the clocks going back, knowing that from tomorrow the darkness will descend much earlier in the evening. It got me thinking about the darker nights and, as much as I love the cosiness and warmth of this time of year, there are elements of the darker nights that I don’t particularly like. November can be the month where the winter blues kick in, as natural light is reduced affecting our body’s internal clock and circadian rhythm. Yet the darkness does act as a perfect backdrop for light. Heidi showed me a photo the other day taken by her friend who is in Paris for the half term. It was a photo from the aeroplane window, as they began to descend into Charles de Gaulle airport in the early evening. Paris lit up; all the lights twinkling. It was

such a beautiful photo and I realised it wouldn’t have looked the same in daylight. It just goes to show that sometimes you need to have the darkness to appreciate the light.

Light and Darkness are recurring themes throughout the Bible. The Old Testament begins in Genesis verse 4 with ‘And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness’. John’s Gospel in the New Testament begins at verse 5 with ‘The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it’. Both are necessary, both are prevalent, but overall the mentions of ‘light’ outweigh those of ‘darkness’, because light will always penetrate the darkness, through faith.

For me personally, November is the first month in our calendar where I really learn to appreciate the darkness; not just in a seasonal sense but in a spiritual sense too. Just like we need rain to see a rainbow, we need darkness to see the beauty of light. I always find that it is during difficult times, times of darkness, that I feel the light of the Lord most, and I’m sure many of you will feel the same. When we pray, we tend to close our eyes, shutting off the distractions so that we can be, and feel, closer to Him.

At the end of October, as a church family, we held our “Light up a LIfe” service where we light candles for our loved ones no longer with us. At times of grief, we use the light of the candle as a way to connect with the Lord, symbolising God’s presence, truth, guidance and the life of Jesus Christ as the light of the world, We then continue into November with Remembrance Sunday; a time of reflection and gratitude for those lives given in sacrifice for our country.

Laurence Binyon's "For the Fallen," is a well known Remembrance Sunday poem, which yields the familiar lines of:

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them

It culminates with the final verse:

As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,

Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;

As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,

To the end, to the end, they remain

Powerful, poignant words which reflect eternal life in heaven, through the light of the stars. Words which emphasise how the morning light of dawn, and the evening light of sunset encompass hope and renewal amidst the darkness of loss and grief.

Mid November onwards is when all the ‘Christmas Light Switch On’ events happen locally and nationally. Christmas lights which

traditionally signify Jesus as The Light of The World. As the days grow shorter it’s another tangible, and beautiful reminder of the victory of light over darkness. It is also a time for communities to come together as the switch is pressed and the lights illuminate to a joyful, unified chorus of ‘ooos’, ‘aaahs’ and ‘wows’.

Within our own Church Calendar, November continues to be a busy month offering many opportunities for us all to share the Light of the Lord. As well as our weekly services we have a special Choral Evensong for Remembrance Sunday, another Live at Shaw concert with Bratton Brass Band.

To end the month I’m currently writing a short Nativity Play which will form part of the Inclusive Church service on the 30th November (First Sunday of Advent). If you are interested in taking part (acting, singing, narrating, or any other ways you can shine your God given light) then I would love to hear from you.

Let us all continue to shine our light throughout November, looking for all the ways we can brighten somebody else’s day as we spread the loving light of Jesus far and wide.

Blessings

Paula