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As we tiptoe into January, and pack away all the Christmas decorations, the New Year can be a time of reflection (on the past year), and a time to look forward (to what’s to come in 2026).

In this way our own experience of 2025 will have been distinctly different.  I’m sure each one of us will have faced personal challenges, in our home, work, social, or even, spiritual lives. Moments that came as a surprise, or a shock, that challenged us, and caused us to rethink, or reorganize our lives.

And in the same way, times of joy, that would have lit up our lives, and made us thankful for all that we have.

I’m sure this is how the Wise Men must have reacted, when they were challenged by God, to find the “King of the Jews.” They too were just going about their daily lives, watching the stars and observing the heavens, looking out for signs that might offer them wisdom, in order to help them advise rulers and kings about a prudent course of action.

However, The Wise Men, having seen the Star, knew that it meant something very special. The moment God had been promising – a moment that would bring Joy to the World, a moment that would change the course of history forever.

And so, travelling from the East, they overcame the challenges they faced; and with the help of a Star, found God at the end of their journey, offering peace and hope for a world that desperately needed to hear it, and receive it.

Consequently, as we look forward to our own personal expedition in 2026, I wonder, along with each one of you, what that journey will look like, and ponder on the challenges, both seen and unseen, that might lay ahead.

But as we take time to consider, when the future reveals itself, that we’ll be guided by a Star, and led to God, who will offer us peace and hope. But also, Joy: the joy in meeting Jesus face to face every day, in what we do, and in one another. And rejoice in the knowledge that we are known, and loved by God, who walks with us on our journey, in every moment, of every day.

So may I end by offering you a happy and blessed New Year, and a prosperous 2026! 

Nick

Almighty, eternal, just and merciful God, grant us the desire to do only what pleases you, and the strength to do only what you command.  Cleanse our souls, enlighten our minds, and inflame our hearts with your Holy Spirit, that we may follow in the footsteps of your beloved Son, Jesus Christ.  

St Francis of Assisi, 1182 – 1226