Scrolling my Instagram feed this Christmas season a friend posted this poem by Meredith Anne Miller.

Christmas is not here to offer

A four-week escape

From the pain of the world

With a paper-thin layer of twinkle lights.

It is not here to anesthetize us

With bows and eggnog lattes.

Christmas is not offering us the chance

To escape the ache of life

Through piles of presents.

Christmas is God saying,

“Yes, this pain is too much. Yes, it is too sad.
Yes, the ache is too great. Hang on.
I’ll come carry it with you.”

Jesus has come to carry the pain of the world with us. Not out of condemnation but compassion. Not from a distance but daringly near. Not to avoid our aches but to acknowledge and carry them with us.

Our hope and prayer is that you will know even more deeply this Jesus who came and is with us. Our privilege and joy is that you would trust us to carry your work with you. From Fuller Formation Groups to Restoration Retreats, from Trellis coaching to Certificate learning, from our Partner Gathering and webinars to Retreats of Silence, we thank you for allowing us to walk and carry the work and gift of spiritual formation together.