As I write this, we are a couple of weeks into the New Year. The decorations are down and despite some cold, snowy weather we are in what we might think of as a more normal time of year.

Of course, it is not normal for some for whom life is always a struggle and indeed our world seems to be in a perpetual struggle with big nations throwing their weight around as of the only rule is ‘might is right’.

As we, maybe, recover from the events of Christmas and New Year, this can be a time to look at our own lives and activities remembering the central message of the season we have just left and of Lent that begins in mid-February – seeing the presence of Jesus Christ active in our world and if we open ourselves to him, in our daily lives. Following him doesn’t mean we avoid the problems of life but, rather, we have a promise that we don’t need to face them alone. As we look at the needs of others we can glibly say ‘I’ll pray for you’, maybe we should ask ourselves how we can be part of the solution to our own and others’ issues and allow ourselves to be part of God’s flow of love and care in his world.

Rather belatedly now, but I still wish you all a happy and peaceful 2026.

Marcus Griffiths