For each of the OoF leaflets you receive there will be the opportunity to share your reflections and creativity here on our website as well as on our FaceBook pages. Sharing the faith together we grow in our understand of God and each other. Any images and words you send in will be put onto the pages here so that we can all share together in OoFing in the times of challenge during the 2020 COVID pandemic when we are not able to meet in person face to face and keep our faith in the ways we have done in years gone by. Pleas do join in.

As we come to the celebration of Christmas we start our time together with the Christingle Services and then the Crib service in St Johns and then our Zoom Midnight Mass, before coming together on Christmas Day to celebrate the Eucharist with Bp Kevin at St Margarets Renfrew. Below you will see the work we have been doing at home to observe our faith in our deomestic settings.

Here is the crib at the end of the service with the photos of people we wanted to bring to the Christ-child this year from our Christmas OoFs

The person – or people – I would like to invite to my crib would be one to represent the millions of migrants who are forced from their homes, and their countries, by their governments, or by war, or by corruption, or simply by what seems to be inescapable poverty and the hopes for a new life, hopes which are often dashed cruelly by the exploitation and greed of those who claim to be able to help their hopes come true – but at a terrible financial cost or, even worse, the cost of their lives. I’d hope and I’d pray that the transformational powers of the birth of Jesus might bring light into the life of refugees, who are so often and so tragically overlooked by a world that seems not to care for their plight…

The people we have chosen to add to our crib are a mother a daughter from India, fleeing floods caused by climate change. Those most at risk from climate change are those in the poorest parts of the world. We pray that we may all learn to love our planet more in 2021.

After labouring in the alotment all year, here is a picture of Lisa and John's produce for their organic Christmas lunch in 2020.

Even though I received the OoF cards a while ago, it didn’t occur to me until Christmas Day about what to place beside my humble crib scene. It is a stethoscope, familiar to all of us because of its function and those who use it; doctors, nurses and physiotherapists. It aids in diagnosis when a patient has respiratory problems. It also reminds me of my career in nursing. I have never been so connected to those who work in the COVID-19 designated areas aka red zones. I thought about the power of the breath and the power of the Spirit (spiritus Latin for Spirit and breathing); the care that healthcare staff give also involves care of the human spirit as well as the physical and psychological. I imagine that the healthcare professionals will be at the crib this year, sometimes loved and sadly, sometimes despised by others. Filled with hope as they approach the Christ child, with humility and reverence. Wanting to be strong and resilient at this difficult and challenging time, but also to recognise that it is okay not to be okay, to sit with both sadness and joy in the care of others.

How does the Christmas message work? A good cartoon sent in by John for us all to ponder as we shall face the challenge of being church together in the approaching 2021.

And also the following words: It’s the kind of image I think of every time I read or hear about “parts of our world that need healing, and the gift of the renewal of the whole creation in Jesus”. This image has a more modern translation – the one I prefer is in the version I used to sing, as in “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, From whence cometh my help?” but it’s the only image I could find with what I feel is the correct punctuation! Because most translations miss out that question mark, and the implication of the wording without that question mark is that my help comes from the beauty of the hills, and from nature’s restorative powers. Whereas, with the question mark there, it becomes clear that the next phrase is the answer: my help comes from the Lord, who made heaven, and earth – and all the beauties of this earth. To listen to the Psalm being sung in awesome beauty, and in the way I most love hearing it, by Kings College Cambridge, look up Psalm 21 and go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjuL6DJfpOY and reflect on the joy of creation and the fact that, for all the griefs of the world, we have a tremendous gift that “the Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore...” Words of the Psalm (from King James version) are at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20121&version=KJV This recording has more music after the Psalm, incidentally, which is the Requiem Aeternam by Henry Walford Davies, who also composed the chant for Psalm 121

As we head towards Tier 4 here in renfrewshire so many of us are being furloughed again and facing the financial challenges that brings. I pray for all people who will now struggle for the coming months to get by, who will miss the routines of going to work and miss their friends at work. Although the retail world can be a little fickle at times we are facing considerable hardship as a whole this year and I fear that many many stores will never open again, especially our little local shops who need us to use them to keep them. Once again our hair will grow, our beards won't get trimmed and the streets will feel empty and lifeless as we avoid contact with as many folk as we can. Furlough is tough especially when so much of your income comes from comission and basic salaries are very low in retail outlets - 80% of not much is even less. Shopping online is okay for a lot of things but it doesn't keep a community alive and vibrant, rather just out of town warehouses full of stock no-one can see in real life and running to the tune of the latest efficiency graded digital gadgets.

This image of the stained glass windows made over in Erskine were sent in from Alex and Moira for us all to enjoy.

This Christmas OoF image was sent in by Alex and Moira. Who are you bringing to the Crib Scene this year in your prayers?

After picking up a Christingle kit on Sunday 20 December Derek went home and put together a christingle with his household as you can see in the picture. Well done Derek for being the first to send an image in.

After picking up a Christingle kit on Sunday 20 December after the St Margaret's service you can see that the family was put to work enjoying building the Christingles which are standing on the coffee table. Well done to everyong who took part.

It was great to hear from Colette that Gabriel enjoyed making a Christingle and colouring in the pictre card in the bag as well. Thank you for the pictures.

Here is the second image sent in from Gaabriel and Colette to show how they took part in the Christingle making on Sunday.

At home witht he Christingle bags Pat sent in the picture of her Christingle just waiting for Christmas to be all lit up.
Also in doing her Christmas Oof Pat writes:-
My OoF thoughts for Christmas Eve.
The Good:
For natures beauty - bless the the morning sunrise and the hope it brings to each new day.
The Bad:
Pray for an end to the exploitation and abuse of children especially in parts of Africa and Asia, where so many suffer at the hands of cruel adults. Pray for all the agencies that work with the poor and hungry across the world.

And this lovely picture comes to us from Katie whoenjoyed making the Christingle on Sunday too after the St Margarets service.

These are the Christingles put together by Mags and Alan.......

Norma is enjoying herself this Christmas with her daughter in England - but will she be allowed back into Scotland, or will she have to wait until the end of the lockdowns? We hope you have a lovely time Norma and we miss you at St Margarets.

After receiving their OoFs in the post last week, Moira and Alex have been getting into the swing of Observing their faith at home as you can see. Take a careful look at the picture they have sent in.

These pictures show the stages of the making of Lisa's stained glass stencil in her home. This might help and inspire you in your making too.