Thought For The Day – Wednesday 17^th December 2025

Thank you very much to Years 7, 12 and Year 13 for their excellent conduct in, and engagement with, our Advent and Christmas Services.  Thank you also to: Mr. Harvey for his fine organisation;  the Music Department, choir, and musicians, as ever,  for their beautiful and wonderful work; the readers who delivered so effectively, fearlessly, professionally, and thoughtfully;  the caring Sixth Form leaders and guides en route to Saint Michael’s Church; and all supervising staff, giving of their expertise and time.

It was wonderful to see Rosemary Thompson was in the congregation yesterday. As the Secretary of Mr. Shaw, a former Headteacher of T.B.S.H.S., and a long-standing worshipper at Saint Michael’s Church, Rosemary was integral and instrumental in setting up our Church Services in the 1980’s.  We are very appreciative to Rosemary, Mr. Shaw, and Mrs. Shaw, and all clergy and staff at Saint Michael’s past and present.  We are very grateful to Mr. Reeve for continuing, and enhancing,  this very important practice and tradition today, following previous Headteachers, and Acting Headteachers.

Yesterday, Reverend Tracey, of Saint James’ Church, Thorley,  pictured above, humbly articulated the following inclusive and profound message, which we reprint in full here:

“Christmas is a season full of messages. Some of them are loud and constant—screens, adverts, expectations, deadlines (those inside school as well as those outside of school). They tell us what we should want, who we should be, and how our lives should look.

The Christmas story – the true Christmas story – offers a very different kind of message.

Christians believe that God chose to communicate not through power or noise, but through presence. (Not the presents placed under the tree, the presence of a life shared with others.)  God acted, not by sending instructions, but by sharing life. The message of this season centres around a baby, born in vulnerability, among ordinary people, in an ordinary place.

This matters, because it tells us something important about how God sees the world—and how we might see one another.

To those of you in Year 7, beginning new chapters and finding your place: Christmas reminds us that beginnings can be small, uncertain, and still deeply important.

To those in Years 12 and 13, facing choices, pressure, and big questions about the future: Christmas reminds us that your value is not measured by results alone, and that meaning often unfolds gradually.

And to all of us, in a world that can feel fractured and anxious, Christmas speaks of light that does not ignore darkness, but enters it—and stays.

So as you leave today, perhaps ask yourself: How do I communicate hope? Where can I bring light? And how might my actions speak louder than my words?

Because the message of Christmas is not only something to hear—it is a life to live.”