Christmas Eve is a time for candlelight.

Who can say what passes through our hearts on Christmas Eve?
Strange thoughts.
Undefinable emotions.
Sudden tears.

Christmas Eve is a time to be quietly glad.
It is a time to wonder, to give thanks,
and of quiet awakening to beauty
that still lives on through the strife
of a war-torn world.

And Christmas Eve is also a time for memories and remembering.

For some, the memories are of loved family members
who have died, and the festive season
makes the pain of those losses ever more real.

For others, the memories are of happier times than we know now,
felt as the anguish of broken relationships,
the insecurity around employment,
the anxiety of illness or poor health,
or the emptiness of loss after drought or bushfire.

All these feelings are with us this night as we gather in this sacred place.
Here we are safe to feel what we feel:
to acknowledge our sadness,
to share our concern,
to release our anger,
to face our emptiness,
and still to know that God by what ever name,
is made present in the caring thoughts and deeds of others.

So let us be and share and remember and receive,
assured that we are not alone in our life experiences as we gather for worship this Christmas Eve.

You are invited to join with us for worship on Thursday, December 24 at 10 pm, as we make that journey which leads to a manger, which leads us to God’s love.  Invite your family and friends to come and experience the miracle of Christmas.