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It was my melancholy duty one dull November day to open up the pavilion of Brockley Cricket Club so that our fire extinguisher could be serviced. The gentleman who turned up to do the far from arduous task was quite friendly. One of his sons helped in the business and the other drove a lorry. The son who drove a lorry had a phobia of spiders. "There’s plenty of spiders in this job," said the man.
It is possible to over romanticise the birth of Jesus in a stable - animal warmth, fresh straw, a soft glow, a radiant mother and a starry sky. When I was a boy in Brockley I played in an old stable attached to the manse. It was a throwback to an earlier era when the gentry drove to chapel in a horse and carriage. Mr Andrew Pawsey’s great grandfather acted as groom on Sunday mornings. He would unhitch the horses and take them into the stable for a rub down and feed. The stable I knew so well had an uneven earth floor and no windows. It was dark and dirty. There were cobwebs everywhere. It was no place for anyone who did not like spiders! If the stable of Jesus’ birth was anything like the old chapel shed God did not exactly provide luxury accommodation for his son. Surely He could have done better! The young mother’s training in child care left something to be desired. What was she doing binding him up in swaddling clothes like an Egyptian mummy? God did bestow upon his son one priceless gift. Mary and Joseph were godly, caring parents. It is a great blessing to have a loving father and mother. Mary too had a choice gift - a baby boy. She was probably very young and had conceived out of wedlock but who can doubt that she thanked God for her son. I can remember a very apprehensive teaching colleague coming to me . Her daughter was in my form and she was pregnant. I rather fear Mrs X thought I was going to be judgmental about underage sex. I said to my colleague, "You know it isn’t a great disaster. Your daughter hasn’t got cancer! A new life is a gift from God." I have since seen my former pupil with her little girl - and she most undoubtedly is a treasure! The coming of Jesus to this world means a great deal to me. I love the lyrics of the angel’s song: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, and good will toward men." It is something to be certain of God’s goodwill! The thing I valued most during my career as a Geography teacher was the goodwill of my pupils. What a gift that is! I could never have completed 37 years in the classroom without it. The company of cheerful and affectionate children was a joy. The arrival of God’s son on earth is a glorious demonstration of God’s goodwill towards us. I meet Hannah when I speak at the Baptist Church in Barton Mills. Hannah’s five-year-old niece, Poppy, told her aunt that she loved her ‘71.’ Why 71? Because it is the biggest number she knows. Poppy told Hannah that she could not love her more. God loves us 71 - he cannot love us any more. This is how God showed his love among us; He sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him. 1John4v9.
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