Towards the beginning of our Sunday services at present, after we have sung our opening worship and before the children go to their groups, we pause with a short prayer and light a candle in a circular ring of Holly. The advent wreath, as it is known, is a regular fixture for many churches at this time of year as we seek to mark and live in the season of Advent – a season of preparation for Christmas. My children’s own routine for marking this journey to Christmas seems to be a daily request of Alexa ‘How many days till Christmas?’, which prompts a different pre-recorded response from someone claiming to be Father Christmas. I’m pretty sure this isn’t the real Father Christmas, as surely, he is too busy, but with the North Pole unlikely to be insulated from the cost-of-living crisis, maybe he has reluctantly accepted a corporate advertising deal from Mr Bezos.
Just like Father Christmas, I’m sure you can relate to being ‘too busy’ at this time of year. Having worked for churches for 17 years straight, I still have vivid memories of the reality of December with the large quantity of volunteer rotas, carol practices, equipment setup, furniture moving, heating repairs, risk assessments and requests to cut foil into the shape of stars. Vivid memories – some fond and some traumatic! This begs the question, what does the season of advent represent for church workers. Is it a journey of preparation to worship and welcome the Christ child, or does it feel like the final pressurised phase of your biggest project of the year?
Journey is a word which is often over-used. Very few Saturday evenings watching Strictly fail to produce the ‘J’ word, as celebrities speak of the life-transformation they’ve experienced from the dancing competition. The focus is always on the journey, not the destination. It’s not the outcome that is important, but the means of getting there.
I’d like to suggest that there is some resonance here for church workers at Christmas. Of course, the destination of Christmas Day is important, as church members and many others across the country come together to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Every carol service, Christingle and other church event in this season is a destination of its own, providing an opportunity to introduce visitors to the gospel message and share our hope with a population who desperately needs it. But in another way, there is no destination to be reached at Christmas. We do this every year and will continue to do this every year. There is always another Christmas coming, another Sunday coming and in January there is a new term coming. (Yes, I’m afraid so, - so try not to let it catch you unawares!)
With no actual destination to reach at Christmas, I’d agree that it is the journey that matters more than the destination. And at Christmas there are 2 journeys to consider, the journey to Christmas, and the journey back from Christmas…
Our prayer for you in this season is that your journey to Christmas is joyful, fruitful, and transcended by a peace that surpasses understanding. This is a pressurised time of the year, but perhaps it would be a richer time of year if it didn’t feel so pressurised. If staff interactions were grace-filled and loving. If planning meetings were fun and cheerful. If the aspirations for our Christmas programme were manageable and focussed. If amid the preparations, there was opportunity to enjoy the companionship of our colleagues and the anticipation of the Christmas narrative. This sounds like a proper advent journey. Is this feasible? I hope so, because being church is more important than doing church. Through prayer, reflection, intentional planning, staff social occasions, good listening, consistent communication and effective teamwork, Christmas can feel like the most magical time of year – even for a Church worker!
Then there is the journey back from Christmas. This hopefully should involve days-off, rest, reflection, retreat, celebration, feedback, logging learnings for next year and a well-timed lull in activity. I hope that you will get an adequate rest, and where you influence this discussion for your team, that you are intentionally facilitating this rest for others. Remember God cares a lot about us getting adequate rest. He mentions it a fair bit in the Bible, and even went as far as including it in his top 10 list of priorities.
What may this mean practically for you? Here are some pointers:
· Appropriate use of annual leave and TOIL for after Christmas
· Making sure you have a plan and compliant approach to time off for UK bank holidays
· Scheduled meeting to hear and record Christmas feedback to help with next year, making sure you celebrate the good things, show appreciation for the hard-work, and encourage each other
· Adequate volunteer engagement for the services on Sunday 1st and 8th January, with rota allocations confirmed sooner rather than later
· Out of office responses on emails and phone lines during the post-Christmas break. You may need to plan an arrangement for any emergency pastoral situations.
· Ensuring your church building arrangements are safe and secure for the week after Christmas, and that heating thermostats or time-clocks are set appropriately. You don’t want to deal with avoidable emergencies if you can help it!
Finally, would it be helpful for you and any colleagues to arrange a time in the New Year to retreat, pray and plan-ahead for the next year. This could be a great opportunity to take stock, re-envision yourselves and seek God’s direction for the term ahead. The secret to enabling these days to happen, is to get them in the diary early before the term gets away from you.
Our UCAN team will be on their Christmas break between 16th December and 2nd January inclusive, as many of us will be seeking to serve our own home churches well in this busy season. Please be assured of our prayers for you during the festivities and our appreciation for your continued service to your local church. The local church is the hope for the world, born out of a baby in a stable, 2000 years ago.
Andy Bagwell - Executive Director
On behalf of the team at UCAN