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Mary felt sad (16 December)

A few years ago, my daughter drew this picture of Mary feeling sad and it reminded me that the Nativity that I have often heard in churches is a Disneyfied version of the Biblical accounts. In Nativity plays, Mary is always happy (except she often doesn’t want to hold Joseph’s hand!) and there is no hint of the depth of pain, trauma and struggle that is ingrained in the Nativity account. The Nativity is more traumatic than an episode of Eastenders, here are some examples:

• Mary experienced the pain of her family and community rejecting her.
• Mary had to travel the 70ish miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem whilst heavily pregnant.
• When they got to Bethlehem there was nowhere for them to stay, none of Joseph’s relatives who lived there had any room for them.
• Mary has to give birth in unhygienic and pretty bleak conditions.
• Mary and Joseph become refugees in Egypt.

Did Mary ever regret saying ‘I am the Lord’s servant?’ Were there times when the words of praise that we now know as the Magnificat became something that she was surprised had come out of her mouth? I’m sure that there were moments of doubt, despair and confusion but in it all she clung to God and she carried his presence and birthed Jesus into the world.

To say that 2020 has been a tough year is probably an understatement and the reality of the Nativity story is what so many of us need to hear at this time, that in the trauma and difficulties that God is present and waiting to be birthed into the darkness and despair.

In the past nine months since our first lockdown began, many of us have lived with times of doubt, despair and confusion. My prayer is that in troubled times that we might cling to God and become more aware that we carry his presence and that he is with us always. May it also be our prayer and desire that the presence of God would be birthed afresh into the circumstances that we and those around us find ourselves in.

Yet in the dark streets shines, the everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in us tonight

If you would like to reflect some more on these themes then you might find this four minute video helpful https://youtu.be/r41PscMZKoc

Christmas Resources and Services

Hayley has helpfully compiled a list of Christmas resources which include a complete carol service, sermons, a reading and a poem: https://www.easternbaptist.org.uk/news/christmas-resources-from-the-regional-team/

Given the restrictions that still exist it is difficult for some churches with fewer technical resources to offer a Carol Service this year. We have created a page on our website that incudes the details of the churches that responded to a recent Facebook post https://www.easternbaptist.org.uk/news/online-carol-services/. If you have a service that is not in this list then please email secretary@easternbaptist.org.uk with the details. Thank you so much for all that you are sharing with each other.