23 December The LORD will give you a sign: a young woman who is pregnant will have a son and will name him ‘Immanuel’. By the time he is old enough to make his own decisions, people will be drinking milk and eating honey. Isaiah 7: 14-15   Lord, we give you thanks that you

22 December Give strength to hands that are tired and to knees that tremble with weakness. Tell everyone who is discouraged, “Be strong and don’t be afraid! God is coming to your rescue.”           Isaiah 35: 3-4   Lord, we pray for all those who are tired and weary – weary from caring for others, weary

21 December The Spirit of the LORD will give him wisdom and the knowledge and skill to rule his people. He will know the LORD’s will and honour him, and find pleasure in obeying him. He will not judge by appearance or hearsay; he will judge the poor fairly and defend the rights of the

19 December Still thou art blest, compared wi’ me! The present only toucheth thee: But och! I backward cast my e’e, On prospects drear! An’ forward, tho’ I canna see, I guess an’ fear! Between threats of variant strains of Coronavirus, tightening of restrictions in the near future, and delays (chaos?) as a result of

18 December When politicians and headline writers start waxing lyrical about whether or not to curb the planned relaxation of Covid restrictions later this month, there is often talk of ‘cancelling Christmas’. You may be able to close pubs, restaurants and hotels, prevent people going abroad on holiday, stop all live concerts, plays and performances,

17 December When I was a student at Glasgow Uni, one particularly dreich November day one of the lecturers advised us to go to the Hunterian Gallery (free to students), find a picture with lots of yellow in it, and contemplate it for a while, allowing the colour to stimulate serotonin in the brain, and