At 3.00pm
on the Sunday immediately before Christmas St. John’s was filled not only with
Christmas trees, but also with a large number of people of all ages, all
gathered to celebrate the start of Christmas.
The musicians
and the choir had each had a brief rehearsal prior to the service which began
with Sue O’Donoghue singing the solo first verse of ‘Once in Royal David’s
City’.
Jeremy then
welcomed everyone and led the opening prayer:
‘At
Christmas time we delight again to hear the story of the journey to Bethlehem,
the song of the angels, the surprise of the shepherds, and their joy as they
found Jesus in the manger.
But lest we
forget he was born to poverty, we remember at this season all who are hungry or
cold.
And lest we
forget he became a refugee, we remember the stranger and the lonely among us.
And lest we
forget he felt the pain of life and death, we remember now those who are ill,
or anxious, or bereaved.
And because
we know he came for our salvation, let us in heart and mind go once again to Bethlehem , to hear the
message of the angels and worship afresh the Son of God.’
The
familiar story of the nativity was then told in a mixture of Bible readings and
carols. The choir performed two of John
Rutter’s carols - The Angel’s Carol and the Star Carol - accompanied by Julie
Ann on the organ, and showed how well they had rehearsed during the previous
weeks.
The Sunday GAP children provided
lively renditions of four up-beat songs
-
‘I fly to Bethlehem’, ‘Mary’s
Boy Child’, ‘Shepherds Rock’ and ‘The Kings’ Song’, and showed not only their
singing skill but also true enjoyment in performing these items. They certainly had the congregation tapping
their feet and smiling.
The
congregation also had the opportunity to sing six familiar carols, two of them
accompanied by
the small ad hoc group of musicians.
Jeremy
delivered a short epilogue in which he reminded us that really when we
celebrate someone’s birthday we are celebrating them becoming older not
remaining a baby, and that for us as Christians, the real joy of Christmas is
that it marks the beginning of God with us as a human being, culminating in
Christ’s sacrifice for each one of us on the cross.
After the
service everyone was invited to enjoy mince pies and tea or coffee in the hall;
a wonderful way to start Christmas.
Thank you to Christine and Stuart for the text and photos for this blog and also to the visiting cellist, John Cotterill!