Yet the uber-commercialised Christmas cheer which we all secretly love belies a seed of anxiety in the hearts of many at what lies ahead in 2009. The nation may be dashing en masse to its favourite shops in the sale time frenzy, but the weekly cull of thousands of jobs continues and research suggests many will be relying on their plastic to cover the costs of Christmas.
Not surprisingly, there has been some anecdotal evidence of an increase in weekly church attendance. There’s nothing quite like a crisis on a global scale to awaken us to our vulnerability in a world that feels beyond our own control, and prompt us to seek help from a higher being.
Luckily for the ones turning to church, they are turning to the right place. Where else can they find a ready-made family, prepared to step in with free bags of food, Christmas presents, and that all-important sympathetic ear?
And where else can they find that mysteriously divine quietude that seems to come only from sitting in a half-lit church and soaking in the sight of the cross, the musky scent of incense, and the quiet murmur of others seeking the same rest.
It’s a blissful rest that the Lord wishes will remain with us even after we have passed back through the doors of the sanctuary and out into the cold, busy world again.
After all, more than the crises in our lives – financial or otherwise - Jesus would be worried about us worrying about them! He would want to take those worries from us and give us the true rest in Him that comes with the assurance that God knows what we need and is working everything out according to His great plan.
