From the Manifesto to the Manger
Have the children in your life compiled their Christmas lists yet? One child I know has asked for a “reel (sic) gun to shoot my brother with.” Another wants a trip to Disneyland. I suspect both will be disappointed.
When I was a child, no one got to read my Christmas lists. My parents craftily convinced my sister and I that because Santa enters the home through the chimney, the fireplace was surely the way to get a message back to him. So, every year our lists went into an envelope addressed to Santa, which was then thrown into the fireplace.
But of course, children aren’t the only ones with fantasy wish lists this Christmas: Boris, Jeremy and Jo all have them too! Want more spending on the NHS, whilst paying less tax? Want better buses for rural areas (how else can we get to Birmingham to catch HS2 to London?) Or perhaps you’d prefer an end to homelessness, a pay rise for the public sector and an end to university tuition fees? Dear Santa…
It seems strange to have an election so close to Christmas. I haven’t heard how Brenda from Bristol has reacted this time round, but I suspect she’ll be loving a Christmas election. She might even suggest doing with the politicians’ Christmas manifesto lists, what my parents did with my Christmas lists all those years ago, assuming you’re still allowed a fireplace in eco-friendly Bristol!
Underlying all of our Christmas and manifesto wish lists is a hope that by changing something outside ourselves, life might become better. And whilst there’s certainly a lot of things that need fixing in our country, at Christmas time it’s important for each of us to remember that the change we need to see most of all, isn’t “out there” but “in here”, in our own hearts and minds.
One of the most beautiful expressions of the difference a changed heart and mind can make is found in a short New Testament letter written by St Paul from his Roman jail cell to the church in the Greek city of Philippi. Despite facing martyrdom and the grim daily joys of Roman prison, he tells his Philippian friends not to worry about him, because he’s
learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
You might wonder what that secret is, and here’s a clue, you’ll find in any of the party manifestoes or in any child’s Christmas list!
Here’s what the secret is. Paul says,
I can do all this through [Christ] who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).
It turns out that the child whose birth we celebrate at Christmas is the only one who can transform our hearts and minds to such an extent, that we can face any circumstance with contentment.
So as you cast your vote on December 12th, remember what deep down in our hearts we all know – that no matter what they promise, politicians never bring contentment! For true hope we have to look beyond the manifesto to the manger!
To find out more about God’s manifesto for contentment, why don’t you join us at your local church’s carol service this Christmas? Visit www.hopechurchfamily.org/christmas for details. And whichever way you vote, may you have a very happy Christmas and a prosperous new year!
First published in the Bridge Magazine, December 2019