The days of Advent draw us, step by step, closer to the stable and the manger where new life will be born at Christmas. Overhead, the stars are brightly shining, lighting the rich deep blue of the night sky with luminescent joy.

The earth turns, the stars appear, the moon waxes and wanes. God is in the heavens. The angels hover overhead. The Magi make their adventuresome way following the light of that one special star. Mary and Joseph find themselves on the road as the time for the birth draws near.

The Christmas story never fails to astonish us with its holy mystery and equally astonishing ordinariness. A baby is born. The animals offer refuge and warmth. Things might appear to be normal, but we know, we believe with all our heart, that new life comes for all. For us. For the world. For the whole of creation.

My Christmas prayer for each of you is that God’s light will shine brightly in your hearts, and that you will experience a renewed sense of God’s love and healing presence in your life. For the light shining in the darkness, shining persistently and magnificently, heralds the dawn of a new day. In the Christ Child is born the fullness of life, joy, and peace for all.