Yesterday was the Winter Solstice and was the shortest day of the year. Light may be scarce but it is our hearfelt belief that no matter how dark things may be there is always light and hope. I took this photo yesterday morning outside the RDS in Dublin, after a brief visit to Dubin to mark a special occasion.

It is only three days to go before Christmas Day. The coming days are busy for everyone. There is a good busy and an exhausting busy. I hope your busy is good. I hope the coming days will be a time of blessings for you. I hope you can enjoy beautiful connections with your family and friends. Whatever your plans are remember the beautiful message of Christmas, that God is with you, that God loves you and that you are precious and special.

(All the normal bits and pieces here) will return tomorrow Friday. Have a good day….James)

Thought For The Week

There is a Christmas story called ‘The Mice in the Piano’ about a family of mice that lived in a large piano. They loved their piano world and the music that often came to them. It filled all the dark places with sounds and a beautiful harmony. At first the mice were very impressed with it. They drew comfort and wonder from the thought that there was someone who made the music. Although this someone was invisible to them, they felt close to whoever this invisible might be. They became known as the ‘unseen player’.

Then one day a daring mouse climbed up a part of the piano that no one had dared to go before and returned in a very thoughtful mood. The mouse had made a discovery at how the music was made. Wires were the secret. He had found tightly stretched wires of graduated lengths which trembled and vibrated. Now the mice had to revise all their old beliefs of how the music came. Only the most conservative of the mice could still believe in the unseen player.
Later another mouse explorer returned from another exploring adventure and came back with a new discovery about the origin of the music. Hammers were now the true secret. There were dozens of hammers that danced and leaped upon the wires to create the music. They dismissed the theory of the unseen player and described it all as a myth. Meanwhile the unseen player continued to play.
It may only be a fable story but it reminds us that at Christmas the unseen player continues to play. Some can call it a myth. Some call Christmas an exaggerated story. But it is also called the greatest story ever told. At its heart is a reminder that while God may be unseen, the music continues to be heard and the music continues to flow. God continues to love us and be with us.
A piano can only work because everything is connected in harmony. Everything works together as one, the player, the keys, the hammers, the strings and the music flows. The music is heard at happy times and also during sad and difficult times too. The music is symbolic of love and at Christmas we celebrate so much love and kindness all around us. We also celebrate God’s beautiful love of us. If there was no Christmas story, the piano would be silent. Some call it a myth. But Christmas is a beautiful celebration of God’s love for us. It is a celebration of the unseen player who continues to play always.

The Thought For The Week is updated each Monday