ADVENT is upon us once more. For Christians it is seen as a time of waiting and preparation before we enter into the joy of Christmas Day - a time of gifting and thanks-giving.

For many though the days leading up to Christmas can all too easily be a time of increasingly frenetic activity as gifts are sourced and bought, cards are written and sent, visits arranged and squeezed into busy schedules. Suddenly Christmas morning arrives with a sense of relief that it is finally here and time can be spent with family and friends.

For others, there are few cards to write and even fewer gifts to buy. Christmas morning brings a sense of isolation and of somehow being out of step with ‘normal family life’. No sense of relief that Christmas has finally arrived. No family and friends to spend Christmas with.

Today, whether your life feels overwhelmingly full or achingly empty I would encourage you to take a moment to stop …. and to wait … and to take time to reflect on what it is you are doing in the build up to Christmas. Is what you are doing initiated by duty, loneliness, love?

My prayer for you in this build up to Christmas Day is that you will feel both loving and loved so that when the waiting is over you will be filled with joy instead of relief. Because Christmas really is a time for us to experience afresh the wonder of God reaching into our lives through the birth of a tiny baby called Jesus. The one who in turn reaches out to us with love and compassion and at whose touch lives are transformed.

The Rev Diane Weaver

Vicar of Barnoldswick with Bracewell