DAY ONE: 1ST DECEMBER 2015 - LIGHT SHINING IN DARKNESS

It's that time of year again! Yes, Advent has arrived -  the season when we mark with expectant anticipation the celebration of the birth of the Saviour Jesus.  It is a time of joy, but also of penitence when we ask God to help us prepare for the celebration to come. 

This year in Sanderstead we are going to celebrate the season by opening a giant-sized, live Advent calendar.   On each day between 6pm and 7pm from Tuesday 1st December up to Christmas Eve on the 24th we will open one garage, porch or shop front somewhere in Sanderstead to reveal a special Christmas display.  

You can find details of each location on the website http://www.sandersteadadvent-ure.co.uk/

Today’s display is very simple - a single candle shining against a dark background.  This reminds us of John 1:5:   “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it”.   Jesus came to shine God’s light into our dark world, bringing love, joy and peace.

"Like a candle flame

Flickering small in our darkness

Uncreated light

Shines through infant eyes

God is with us, allelujah
God is with us, allelujah
Come to save us, allelujah
Come to save us
Allelujah!

Stars and angels sing
Yet the earth sleeps in shadows
Can this tiny spark
Set a world on fire?

Yet this light shall shine
From our lives, Spirit blazing
As we touch the flame
Of his holy fire.

Graham Kendrick
Copyright 1988 Make Way Music
www.grahamkendrick.co.uk
(4850 CCL)

We hope these displays help you think about the real meaning of Christmas.  It isn't just about all you can eat or all the presents you acquire.  Rather, it's about recognising that, in Jesus, God came to be "with us" as one of us - so we need to be ready to receive him.