Welcome to our service today. It is great to have you here and we would love to invite you to stay after the service and join us for tea and coffee.
CHRISTMAS is on the cards. Sending and receiving greeting cards is still part of our Christmas experience although technology has brought about some changes in the way they are delivered and received! The Christmas greeting is key because it was at the centre of the Christmas story in the Bible.
In the book of Luke, the Angel Gabriel was sent by God to Mary. His greeting and message troubled Mary. She was to conceive and to bear a son on her own. He was to be called Jesus and He would be great and be called the Son of God. Gabriel’s greeting and Mary’s response lie at the heart of Christmas. God comes to us in Jesus, born of Mary. God steps into the world and shares our human experience. The baby of Bethlehem is God with us and at Christmas we wonder at the purposes of God and marvel at His ways. It is God’s story we celebrate at Christmas and for most of us it is our story too. Like Mary we are favoured by God’s grace, and like her we are asked to believe and receive God’s gift, Jesus Christ His Son, as our Saviour and Lord. However for many of our friends, family, neighbours and colleagues this is not their story. As we lead into Christmas let us be praying each day for those around us who do not yet know Jesus.
I encourage you to be brave and invite them to our Christmas Carols on the lawn and/or our Christmas Eve service where they will hear the Christmas story clearly presented and have the opportunity to make it their story too.
With love & blessings, Sandra
Beckenham Baptist Church 