Sunday and Christmas Eve greetings everyone! On behalf of Grandma Cybersalt and myself, I would like to wish you a blessed and soul-filled Christmas.

This Christmas is a very different one for us featuring the breaking of many traditions, the making of some new ones, and probably some one-offs too. One of the biggest changes is that we have already celebrated our family get together with two of our three children (the third and her family not being able to be home at all). To accommodate work schedules, Christmases with their in-laws, and to give us the most time together, we had both our traditional Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas morning present opening "untraditionally" on the 23rd. 

The most zealous of shoppers would say that means we have 366 days to get ready for next Christmas. However, we see it as one more morning for some family time and farewells, and then a leisurely anticipation of a 10pm Christmas Eve communion service. Next comes an unrushed Christmas day to celebrate and remember what God has already done 2000 years earlier. For though we find ourselves in a place and stage of life with much already enjoyed this Christmas, the most important thing we have to revel in remains the life changing reality of Jesus's birth in Bethlehem to (as the song says) "set us free from Satan's power when we had gone astray."

Seasons of life, those inhabiting them with us, and the traditions born out of the combination of both will come and go, but God's gift of restored life with Him will remain as unchanged as the gift He gave that first Christmas.

God bless you all and enjoy the rest of today's mailing

~ Pastor Tim