In 2009, a nationwide campaign was launched aimed at commuter pedestrians, especially in the CBD areas, to be very aware when crossing the road. The words STOP, LOOK, LIVE were painted on the roadsides where pedestrians were most likely to cross. The campaign specifically focused on the dangers of distraction.

The message was clear—WATCH OUT!

Some years ago, American cartoonist Bill Watterson created a daily comic strip called Calvin and Hobbes. The strip was based on the antics of Calvin, a precocious and adventurous 6 year old boy, and his stuffed tiger, Hobbes. Together, they explored life through conversation. One day, Calvin said to his friend, “Live for the moment is my motto, for you never know how long you’ve got. Why, I could step out into the road tomorrow and get hit by a cement truck! So, what’s your motto, Hobbes?” To which Hobbes replied, “Look down the road.”

I think both Calvin and Hobbes together had it right. Each day is a gift, and we are called to be fully present to it, to be fully alive and aware of the many treasures life offers us. At the same time, we are also mandated as Christians to look down the road and be fully alert to what is happening around us in our communities and further afield. This, I think, is particularly true as we move towards Advent and Christmas. An occasion of celebration and time spent with loved ones is not the reality for so many people here in our country. For example, the hardship that poverty creates is heightened at this time as families struggle to provide the basics, let alone extras. For many, too, it is a time of extreme loneliness and isolation.

Henri Nouwen once said, “You are Christian only so long as you constantly pose critical questions to the society you live in… so long as you stay unsatisfied with the status quo and keep saying that a new world is coming.”

Advent offers us the opportunity to press the pause button on the frenzied consumerist version of Christmas and to reactivate our settings to receive alerts to what is happening within humanity’s home. To really reflect on what is important for us as Christians living in today’s troubled and largely secular world. So stay alert and be ever watchful of what is happening down the road. Why? Because the Christ who walked the streets, active and fully engaged in the pain and the chaos, showing through his words and actions how much he loved and cared for all, is right here right now, deep within us, calling us to partner with him in bringing about a new beginning.

He invites us today to turn longing into hope and hope into loving action. In a recent media interview at the official opening of Wellington City Mission’s new building, Whakamaru, Murray Edridge, the City Missioner, spoke passionately of “eliminating the divide between ‘us and them.’”  Bringing this into our Diocese today, let’s stop and look and actively seek ways we can respond to the needs of our neighbours this coming Christmas. One way we can all contribute is by donating food and toys for distribution to families in need.  At the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul, we are preparing to support the Wellington City Mission’s Star Box appeal. This appeal is a great way to give food and toys to many families.  Soon we will be receiving the star boxes at the cathedral. How about you join us in bringing joy to many families this Christmas through actively supporting the appeal?

“Christmas is forever, not just for one day,
For loving, sharing, giving, are not to put away
like bells and lights and tinsel, in some box upon a shelf.
The good you do for others is the good you do yourself.”
—Norman Brooks

Rev. Chris Frazer, Deacon for Social Justice
Wellington Cathedral of St Paul