Merry Christmas! A Blessed New Year!

I'm getting ready to go to Mass, we will have to arrive 45 minutes early to get a seat today. The rice balls are ready to be fried. This year my cousin is hosting Christmas Eve dinner so it will be less hectic tonight but I've still been cooking for days. Tomorrow I will have company on Christmas Day.
I'm grateful for the beautiful feast of Christmas, for the Savior of the World who made all this possible. The Christ Child brings joy and hope. Certainly the world needs the message He preached of love, forgiveness, God's mercy, healing, prayer, salvation and bringing forth the Kingdom of God. For those who hear the message and respond, they are surely blessed. For those who reject the message, we can only pray that someday they will come to the knowledge and love of God. A relationship with God through prayer is enriching and brings hope, if only all eyes could be opened to that reality.
May you have a blessed Christmas and I pray the New Year will be filled with hope, joy and new beginnings for all. It's been a difficult year for many on the east coast of the U. S. The news has been horrific, but for those who love God, they can go forward knowing many people are praying for them and caring from afar. Hope is essential for a Christian as is sharing compassion and charity.
Merry Christmas!
NJA