FOR many of us, Christmas evokes all kinds of emotions. There might be the grief of loved ones lost during the past year or there might be anxiety about what 2020 will bring.

I look back with delight at the switching on of the Christmas lights, in Crediton, with a large number of people gathered in the Town Square and enjoying themselves.

There is the sense of joy and wonder when I walk through the town and gaze up at all the lights and decorations. All of this reminds me of Christmas... and that Christmas inspires hope.

The stories surrounding the birth of Jesus remind us that God became one with us, in a dark, dingy stable. There is something powerful about reality here... God entering the disarray of human life and ultimately transforming it.

And this fills me with hope because I am reminded that the light of Christ shines in the darkness. That’s at the heart of the Christmas story.

God shows us the light and guides us towards love. Christmas teaches us that even when things seem dark, we can trust the everlasting light of Christ and that gives real hope.

A happy and joyful Christmas to you all, filled with hope for the future.

The Revd Matthew Tregenza

Holy Cross Church, Crediton