As the leaves are changing to their vibrant colours of oranges and browns from lush green, we recognise that the seasons are a changing. I love Autumn because of the colour transformation and the sharp cold crisp morning air, that causes us to take in a sharp intake of breath. As Autumn will fade and Winter draws in, we are reminded of cold, wet darker days ahead. Perhaps it feels like the time when Jesus died on the cross and his disciples lost all hope and a promising future had been snuffed out like a candle in a strong wind. The disciples were perhaps in their own sense of Winter of loss and bewilderment, not knowing what the future held. At the same time remembering the shared experience of the warm glow the last time they met with Jesus in the upper room. That precious moment seemed like a long distant memory in the hour of their darkness. Sometimes life may be like that for us, none of us are immune to the experiences of living life. In November we are also reminded of those others who sacrificed their lives in wartime and the darkness that was left from their passing. Every year we are rightly reminded of their sacrifice too. Yet, as we pass through Autumn and enter Winter, we have the hope of Spring and Summer just around the corner. The autumnal colours in the trees are a reminder to us of the vibrancy and life-giving wonder of God in nature. Perhaps going into slumber for now yet storing up energy for that burst into life on the other side. Just as Jesus passed through death and came out the other side risen and alive, we too have that hope of new beginnings and new starts and that sense of hope that only Jesus gives of a better time that is ahead. As we pass through Autumn and Winter, let us cling hard to the knowledge that light will shine with each new day and that Jesus will shine in us with each new day too. I wonder where do we see signs of light, hope and new life in our context? They are there, sometimes we just need to stop what we are doing, look around and notice what God is doing, for God is with us as we are reminded in Advent.
Every Blessing.
Rev Paul Welch