Dear Friends,

What is it about the festive season that makes it one of the greatest times of year for some and one of the most dreaded times of year for others?  Sometimes the painful part of Christmas is knowing that our relationships are not what they should be and maybe even that we are not where we should be, either in terms of our familial relationships or our relationship with God.

I know what you’re thinking, what a sombre note to start a pastoral page with, but the wonderful thing about this time of year is that it reminds us that God did not leave us to our brokenness and our sad state, He sent His Son; and Isaiah 9:6 says:  “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Most of us have visited a Counsellor or a Psychologist when we’ve found that life is a little too much for us to cope with or to get us over a hurdle that looks too big for us to handle ourselves.  This scripture tells us that Jesus has come to be our “Wonderful Counsellor”.

Let’s all celebrate the coming of our Wonderful Counsellor, our Friend and our King this festive season and make Him the focus of the Season.  And as we do this we might find our Counsellor is healing some of the hurts, giving us courage to forgive or ask for forgiveness and is giving us the strength to make it over the hurdles that face us this Christmas.

Many Blessings,

Taiki