Dear Friends,

“And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: ‘Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.’

And he replied: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.’”

Minnie Louise Haskins

It was 1939 and King George VI faced the challenge of giving his Christmas radio broadcast to an Empire facing the uncertainties of war. George VI was reluctantly thrust into the spotlight following the abdication of his elder brother; he wasn’t brought up to rule and lived with a life-long stammer. During this challenging Christmas speech he quoted an obscure poem his wife had found in an unknown book a few days earlier.

Minnie Haskins, then aged 64, wasn’t near a radio at the time of the broadcast. It wasn’t until a few hours later that she heard a summary of what had been said and realized the King had used her words. Overnight a poem written by a woman few people had heard of and published 27 years earlier in a book that received little or no acclaim, became one of the most quoted works of the 20^th Century.

 “Stars” played a key role in our Christmas at Conway Road this year and this continues as we celebrate Epiphany, watching as the Magi follow a star in the Heavens right to feet of God incarnate – the Light of the World. At the baptism of Jesus we see Heaven and earth collide as Jesus is declared God’s beloved Son.

At Christmas 1939 an unlikely King quoted an unlikely poet who spoke of an unlikely God. A God who chose unlikely heroes: the unmarried woman; the simple carpenter; the unclean shepherds; the foreign magi; a man from the wilderness. Each gaining more from his coming than they could possibly imagine. Inviting them to put their hands into his and be guided.

As we enter this New Year, may the God who is full of surprises bless us too in ways that are beyond our expectations, hopes and dreams, and may he use us in unimaginable ways.

We put our hand in his and trust in him.

Happy New Year!

Love and blessings,
Laura