11th January 2026THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK - From Vicar GeoffTransformedThat is the word for the ABC Churches in 2026. In reality, it was the Greek word μεταμορφόω pronounced metamorphoo, from which we get the English word literally or figuratively "metamorphose". I don’t usually get into the Greek, it was never a strong subject for me, so it was a real struggle for me to receive the word from God. But he usually surprises me! I find it quite significant that last year’s word was ‘new’ and this year ‘transform’ which of course bears many similarities and it got me thinking about how God transforms us into a new creation in Christ as we allow Him to change, mould and reform us to be more like Him. Ultimately that is what a desire to become more like Him does. But I admit that He probably finds that a real struggle. I’m far from perfect and have my struggles, but trust that God is in the process of transforming me, through experiences and challenges, times when I let others or myself down. But that is the whole point. When we come to Jesus He doesn’t expect us to be perfect, but works in progress. I certainly am that.Transformed isn’t just about us as individuals though. It is about our churches and our society, our villages and our nation. We all need to be transformed. Take our village churches. We often moan that more people don’t come to our services, our congregations are small, we have no children. But is that really true. For the second year running I have seen a large number of children and families coming to the Christmas events which are specifically curated for them. Christingles and Crib Services all attracted many families. The Living Nativity in a barn on a farm in Askham Bryan was the best attendance yet, with over 100 adults and children.That doesn’t mean that there isn’t a place for more traditional worship. In fact, a recent Bible Society survey discovered that there is an increase in young people seeking traditional worship opportunities such as Choral Evensong. But transformation is what will happen across our churches, as we become more open to the movement of Holy Spirit and respond to the needs of the communities we serve.The Word for 2026 was revealed to me in the context of Romans 12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”We are called, not to fit in with the culture we find ourselves in, without giving it any thought, but to fix our sight on God and take notice of what He is up to. One of my favourite phrases is “God is unchanging, but a God of change”. As we head into 2026 may we seek God for His call upon our churches and be prepared to transform what we do, to reach more people for Jesus.Geoff.
THOUGHT - From Vicar GeoffChristmas is anything but new … or is it?Over the past year we have focussed on the Word for the Year for the ABC Churches - New. It came with Isaiah 43:19:“19 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.”Over the course of the year we have been looking at what new things God has been doing amongst us. At the beginning of the year we had hoped that we would see progress on the formation of our new ABC Ministry Unit, incorporating ABC & AAA pluralities. While I have begun to minister across all the churches and we have formed the Churches Leadership Team (CLT) made up of myself, our Licenced Lay Ministers (LLMs), those in training to be LLMs and Church Wardens, our own progress seems to have outpaced that of the Church of England, who are overseeing the legalities. News is that we as churches have made progress and we are seeing new things sprout up. We have this year appointed Amy Batchelor to a new role as our Children, Youth and Families Worker and we are looking forward to her joining the team in January. With support and encouragement we have grown a team to run Messy Church, our most well attended gathering, which happens each month. We have also grown a team to run Little Fish (the parent and toddler group that meets each Tuesday at St Giles Copmanthorpe) and are looking at how we can grow the team that runs Little Apples (which meets in Bolton Percy each Wednesday). All of these ‘new’ developments have come about as a result of much prayer and listening to God two aspects of our corporate life together which will be the bedrock of our mission and ministry going forwards. I sense a real excitement bubbling away across our villages and I am eagerly waiting to see what God does next.A prayer I have been increasingly praying each day is that God would give me God conversations each day. And he has! Culminating in one incredible conversation after a wedding this past weekend. Whenever I have remembered to pray that prayer, I have had an amazing encounter. When I have forgotten, because I have been too busy or too lax, I haven’t. It reminds me that we need to be intentional with our daily activity for God. I have just been so encouraged since I started praying that prayer each day and those ‘God’ encounters tend to happen in the most unusual places and when they do, we need to make time for them. As we go through our Christmas festivities look out for those moments and take time to nurture the conversations that begin. You never know what God is up to.So, as this is the final newsletter of 2025 (can you believe it?) let’s be intentional about our following of Jesus and our prayers, so that we begin to regularly see God on the move. For me 2025 has definitely been a year of ‘new’ things. I hope your year has been too and that as we go into 2026, we will embrace all that God has in store for us as individual disciples, but also in our church communities and as a Mission and Ministry Unit, working together to build His Kingdom.Have a very happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year!Geoff
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK - From Daniel Khan18th December 2025Into the WarmthWe are now well into the season of Advent and the world outside is becoming sharp, dark and cold. Having grown up in the Caribbean, I am especially aware of the cold! The air bites, the pavements and bushes glitter with frost, and every breath seems to hang in the cold morning light. Many of us would prefer to stay indoors, wrapped in blankets, avoiding the sting of winter. And yet this physical cold can remind us of another kind of chill we sometimes encounter, one not felt by the skin, but by the heart. I am sure that we all felt a chill on hearing of the dreadful recent event on Bondi Beach, it is a struggle to understand the dark thinking that brought about such actions, and to comprehend the coldness that had settled in the hearts of the two gunmen.Closer to home, however, we may also know what cold relationships feel like: conversations that have frozen over, long silences where warmth once lived, or misunderstandings that settle like snowdrifts between friends or family. We may have experienced a frosty welcome, even in places that should offer refuge, sometimes even in the Church. Perhaps we can recall a moment when walking through the doors felt a bit like stepping out into an icy wind, we felt unsure, hesitant, reluctant.And yet, Advent proclaims a different story. Into a world that knew winter, Jesus comes as warmth, not the fleeting warmth of a momentary fire but the deep, sustaining warmth of God’s love. As the prophet Isaiah foretold: “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:2)The light that dawns is not harsh or blinding but gentle and warming. It thaws what has grown numb. It softens what has hardened. It invites us back into life. And Jesus meets the coldness of the world not with more coldness, but with compassion. “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Matthew 12:20)What a picture of divine gentleness, God tending even the faintest spark, coaxing it into flame.As the temperatures drop, we may find ourselves reluctant to go outside. And yet Christ calls us beyond our comfort, not into harshness but into His warmth, the warmth of reconciliation, welcome, and renewed hope. His invitation is simple: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)Advent is a season of waiting, but it is also a season of warming. It is a time for the Church to be a place where frost melts at the door, where strangers are met with hospitality, and where those carrying coldness inside them encounter the glow of Christ’s presence.So, as we light the candles on the Advent wreath, let us allow the small flames to remind us that warmth is returning, hope is stirring, and the Light is coming into the world. May we each reflect that warmth, and in reaching out to thaw old hurts, let us offer a kind word to someone standing in the cold. Let us ensure that our church doors open into a place where Christ’s love is felt as clearly as the warmth of a fire on a winter’s night.Come, Lord Jesus. Melt our coldness. Kindle our hope. Warm our hearts again.Daniel Khan (Licenced Lay Minister)
