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Good Morning. I work in central London and much of the news I consume acts as if the capital is the centre of the universe. But I also spend time on the west coast of Scotland, and I’m proud to say I still have a subscription to the ‘Oban Times,’ the journal of record for Argyll and Bute. Oban is midway up the coast, several hours drive northwest of Glasgow. It may be the closest city and mainland ferry port for most of the isles, but it is also a small town. The front page of the Oban Times last week carried an unexpected Christmas message for me: it shows five proud crewmembers on the deck of a new lifeboat, a bright orange Shannon Class 13-50, the ‘Campbell-Watson’. Inside, a local lass in full storm gear stands in the bow to pipe the boat into harbour. It might not make the headlines elsewhere, but this new lifeboat is crucial for Oban. Here’s the thing that struck me: this crew from the highlands had sailed it all the way from Dorset via Ireland in the middle of the winter storm season, when they could have easily gone by road. It had been a conscious choice, they told the reporter, so they would get to know how the boat handled in rough weather, and gain confidence in her capability. They got their wish: facing some very rough seas indeed. That crew chose to steer into the storm, preparing for the day when called to save those in distress, they would have no choice. Jesus’ birth took place in a storm of a different kind: his parents were displaced by global politics, stranded in Bethlehem without a home or shelter, and then fled for their lives into Egypt as refugees. I think there’s a lesson for all of us Christian or not in what the lifeboat crew chose. Christmas is not just a chance to take a break from the hard global news stories – as if we could anesthetise ourselves with tinsel and lights and excess. Christmas is a time for us to steer into the storm, to stand up and stand together and prepare for the day when we are called to help. God chooses to do just this with us, ‘born as man with man to dwell,’ in the words of Charles Wesley’s carol, ‘hark the herald angels sing.’ That’s the heart of the Christmas message; God with us. Jesus never promised life would be easy sailing. Rather he came to his disciples in the heavy seas, telling them not to be afraid. So congratulations on the new lifeboat in Oban, and a strong and good Christmas to all of you, from central London.