1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4 in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.
Reflection
In the Advent season especially, as the days grow shorter, night blankets the world longer, and the temperatures drop lower and lower, we become enveloped in, and much more of our time is quite literally spent in the dark. One thing I have enjoyed this year after PYC is seeing the lights of the sanctuary shining brightly through the stained glass windows, illuminating the stories depicted within, contrasted starkly against the darkness of night. It’s the same reason I always sat in the balcony at our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service as a child, to see the myriad of candle lights shining across the dark sanctuary from above. It’s these reminders, these symbols of God’s love and grace shining in our church windows, in the candlesticks of Advent, in the Christmas lights lining our streets that continually tune me into God’s presence and remind me of the coming of Jesus, the light of the world. My prayer is that we always see the light of God around us. By day, by night, and all the moments in between, may we never forget that the light shines in the dark and that the darkness will never overcome it. Amen.
Tristan Wall