Doesn’t Christmas seem a long time ago now? the decorations have been tidied away, the lights have been taken down, and the New Year resolutions that we made, when we were filled with positivity, have been broken; life can seem a bit flat. The challenge to us all is to hold onto the joy and optimism of the nativity, not just through the Christmas season, but throughout the year. This can be difficult as it is natural to look backwards, not forwards, it is normal to doubt ourselves, rather than to be confident in our abilities, it is only human to let our failures outweigh our successes, and we often set ourselves unrealistic targets. We set ourselves up to fail. In Isaiah 43: 18-19 we are told to ‘Forget the former things: do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland’. God reminds us that we should always have hope, even when the road ahead looks empty, and we feel that options are few. God reassures us that we should embrace change, no matter how difficult and uncomfortable that may be. And most of all God appeals for us to have faith, faith in the unseen future, faith in him, and faith in ourselves. So may you carry the joy and optimism of the nativity with you throughout this coming year in whatever you do.
Mark 3: 7-12 Crowds Follow Jesus7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. 11 Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about him.HomilyAs we explore the gospel reading together, may the written word and the spoken word become the living word, Amen.In our modern world fame is familiar to us, it’s part of our culture, of our everyday lives. Film stars, pop stars, eco warriors, influencers; these are the people who could control and guide our lives.In the gospel reading Mark 3:7-12 Jesus was at the height of his ministry, you could say at the height of his ‘fame’. Crowds from a diverse range of places had heard about his healing power, about the miracles he was performing, and they clamoured to reach him.Because of his ‘fame’ Jesus was busier than ever, the pressure on him must have been enormous, he could have sat back, and rested on his laurels, thinking, I’ve done enough now, my reputation will go before me, what I have achieved will speak for itself.But no. Jesus knew that this wouldn’t be adequate for God, his Father, he knew that this wasn’t his ultimate aim, he knew that he couldn’t give up as hundreds upon hundreds came to him to be healed. So, to reach even more people Jesus moved away from the crowds, into a boat, where he could speak to the multitudes across the water.This should bring us reassurance and comfort. No matter how busy Jesus was, how known he was, how ‘famous’ he was, he had time for the multitudes, and he still does.We are all busy, we all lead busy lives, but we also have needs, we have worries, and we have concerns. But we also have the assurance that Jesus hears us, and in our modern world Jesus can be our influencer. If we actively seek him, if we step forward and approach him, if we include him in our daily lives, if we take our struggles to him, if we put our trust in him, if we have faith in him, then he will meet us, because he has the power to change our lives.
