Some people thought we had peaked last year but they were wrong. Even more families turned out in force to join our no rehearsal Nativity service on Christmas Eve at Dunsfold Church.There were three generations of several local families as grand parents were joined by their children and their grand children as the clans reunited for Christmas in Dunsfold. Our crib service is becoming a cornerstone of Christmas worship In our village.And we had a live actor playing baby Jesus in the form of the beautiful, and quiet, Atticus who did sleep peacefully in our manger.Judith Lahey-Bean was as usual the narrator of the play and had put together an highly efficient team to help dress the young actors and direct them through the service.Jacquie Griffiths, the wife of our new rector and a qualified lay leader, led the formal parts of the service and spoke about this being her family’s first Christmas in our parish. Fr Shane was taking part in the Hascombe nativity at the same time.Anybody who has attended this event in the past will know it’s relaxed with no worries about people moving in church or making noise. That was part of the joy again and Mel Shone, in charge of our roving microphone, encouraged our youngsters to deliver their best lines.A crib service of this kind couldn’t work without a team of helpers who all deserve our grateful thanks even if there are too many to mention individually. However, it’s only right to mention our organist Tanya Brooks for her typically energetic playing. But as Jacquie said at the start: “The stars of the show are our children.” And they delivered for us again in a memorable performance.You can find more photos of the event by clicking on the attached links to this article.
Our ever-popular Crib Service will take place on Wednesday in Dunsfold Church at 4pm.Please come early to get a seat in church and for children to be helped in dressing up in their Nativity character costume. We hope to see our customary packed house as generations of Dunsfoldians get back together for Christmas. Their starting point is our Crib Service.
The opening words of John's gospel indicate that God wanted to change the world but not from a distance so he decided to get up close and personal through his Son, Jesus Christ. He spells it out in verse 14. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. God comes to earth in the form of the Christ child. In time that child gave us a message saying: “I have come that they might have life and have it abundantly."What do these words mean to us in the here and now? I guess from an advertising point of view if one were to skew the message it might make a good slogan for selling the latest must-have computer game, Mac book or mobile phone. For some these things are their life, for they cannot seem to live without these accessories and they have them in abundance. We'd be kidding ourselves, would we not, if we said that we too were not to a greater or lesser degree pulled into the commercial side of Christmas. But are we too, to be counted with those who strive for more than they need and can afford? Or do John’s words of Christ bringing us life in abundance have a deeper meaning for us. I hope so, because surely the gift of God in Jesus is so much more than anything man-made.Let us treasure the gift from God that we have been given this Christmas. The word made flesh in the Christ child. Let us not consign Jesus to a dusty old bookshelf to be left within the pages of scripture only to brought out once a year like the Christmas decorations. God isn’t just for Christmas, He’s for life.
