Where are we going?

Another Christmas is almost upon us.  Another year is almost over.  After the focus around Halloween, then Bonfire Night, then Remembrance, we shift our attention to the Christmas season.  Then it will be the new year celebrations, then Valentine’s Day, then Mother’s Day, then Easter, then school/village fetes, then summer holidays...   In the midst of this annual cycle of events we also have personal and family birthdays and anniversaries; times of great celebration, and times of sadness and grief.Sometimes the years seem to fly by with one event, or festival after another.  At other times they seem to drag on for ever.  Some years can feel like an endless stream of events where nothing has changed.  In other years our whole world may have been changed due to a new job, or a new home, or a birth, or a marriage, or a death, or some other reason for joy or grief.

The end of one year and the beginning an another is a great time to pause and reflect.  However, in the endless stream of events and activities, it’s rare that we make time to do that.  I wonder if we sometimes surround ourselves with activities and noise, so that we can avoid asking those big questions; Where have I come from, and where am I going?  Some questions that can help us look back are:· What things have pleased me most in this last year? · What are the most valuable lessons I have learned?· Who are the people that have influenced me most?· When and how have I grown in the last year?Looking forward, the questions we most often ask ourselves are, ‘What to I want to achieve in this next year?’, or ‘What do I want to get done?’  However, I think the more important questions to ask ourselves are, ‘Who do I want to become in the next season of my life?’, and ‘What do I need to prioritise if I am to make progress on that?’For example: · If I want to become better at my job, or change it, I might need to commit to a training course; · If I want to be a better parent or spouse, I might need to block out some time in my weekly schedule to be with my children or partner; · If I want to be healthier, then I might need to commit to getting to bed earlier, changing my diet or putting time for regular exercise into my schedule.The truth is that it is not an endless cycle of events; through it all we change and grow, and each year we come back to the next birthday, or the next festival/event a different person than the year before.  Sometimes that change is accidental, driven by the events around us, but pausing and asking questions like those above can help us to be more intentional about who we want to become in this next year.About 2000 years ago Jesus stepped into the annual cycle of events in our world and brought a change that has echoed through history.  Frederick Buechner wrote:

It is impossible to conceive how different things would have turned out if that birth had not happened whenever, wherever, however it did … for millions of people who have lived since, the birth of Jesus made possible not just a new way of understanding life, but a new way of living it. It is a truth that, for twenty centuries, there have been untold numbers of men and women who, in untold numbers of ways, have been so grasped by the child who was born, so caught up in the message he taught and the life he lived, that they have found themselves profoundly changed by their relationship with him.I pray that you will make the time this Christmas to pause and ask some of those big questions of life.  And I pray that this next year will be significant for you in becoming more of the person you want to be. Rev Barry Jackson

'Who do you want to become in this next season of your life?' is one the questions we keep coming back to in our 'Living Well' Course.  This is a 5 week course that explore how we manage stress and build resilience. The next course starts on Wednesday 16th January. 

For more information, or to book a place please email Katie at edgehilloffice@gmail.com