Be re-charged this Christmas-time with the hope of a brighter future - The Redditch Standard

Be re-charged this Christmas-time with the hope of a brighter future

Redditch Editorial 25th Dec, 2021   0

By The Reverend Paul Lawlor

BATTERIES not included is possibly a phrase that belongs to an age past.

For many of us it was a phrase which could turn the joy of receiving a present into a frustrating delay, a need to wait until batteries could be sourced.

I guess today the delay is more likely to be a wait for something to charge…or another technical issue to be resolved.




It is the frustration of waiting that I would like us to reflect upon.

I suspect that many of you, like me, will be unimpressed by the sense of déjà vu that this Christmas is bringing.


Last year, we hoped this Christmas would be very different.

We hoped that 2021 would play out in the different way.

Words of comfort in difficult times: The Revd Paul Lawlor.

In reality, we are still waiting. Waiting to be back in a world without restriction, without the concerns about the Health Service, without limitations on work and what we can do socially.

But waiting is tough.

At St Stephen’s in Redditch town centre, with other churches around the world, we are coming to the end of Advent, a time when we focus on waiting.

We look at those waiting for the arrival of Jesus, that first Christmas, those waiting and preparing the way for His coming.

Most of all we focus on the wait for Jesus to come again.

We seek to anticipate what the perfection of Heaven and Earth will be like.

The risk, as the Church waits for Jesus to perfect all things or as we wait for a time when the Covid virus is no longer affecting our lives, is that we wait passively, we wait impatiently, we are frustrated and grumpy.

We can be like a toy with the batteries not included.

My hope and prayer is that we can wait actively; that we can wait anticipating the future we are looking forward to.

Can we seek to transform the world now to be more like what we want, and, more importantly, as God would want it to be.

I am conscious that over these last 20 plus months many people have become aware that we need more.

If you feel as if the batteries are missing then try pressing into what Jesus can bring to our lives.

Engage with a local church, in person, or online.

Or, try Alpha, were we get to ask any questions and see what God has for us.

I pray you have a great Christmas and that you have all the batteries you need.

Do Check Out:

Christmas in St Stephen’s in Redditch town centre: ststephensredditch.com/christmas/

Churches Together in Redditch: ctir.church/

Online services from St Stephen’s and the Holy Trinity Team youtube.com/c/HolyTrinityRedditch

Try Alpha holytrinityredditch.org.uk/courses/

Revd. Paul Lawlor, Vicar St Stephen’s Redditch and Town Centre Chaplain

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