Royal Park Place | Life Style Newsletter | December 2024

Chaplain’s Corner

through the darkness, eventually arriving at our cabins. When morning arrived, the van drivers surveyed the situation and discovered that there was another road leading to the cabins that ended right by the cabin doors. This road was unmarked and, therefore, couldn’t be seen in the darkness and snow of the night before. You can easily guess where the vans were parked at the end of the retreat when all the bags and suitcases had to be reloaded for the trip home. What a difference the daylight can make! In this Advent season, we await the arrival of the light of the world, Jesus. His arrival was prophesied in Isaiah 9:2, which says: “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” John 1:4–5 verify that this light of the world is Jesus. “In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” As we journey through Advent toward Christmas, remember to walk in the light! Blessings this Advent and Christmas!

When my son Adam (who is now 23!) was in fourth grade, I helped chaperone a group of fourth- through sixth grade students on a weekend retreat to a camp a few hours away. Our group of sixty students and leaders arrived at the camp well after dark, during the first heavy snowfall of the winter season. Our vans were guided to the base of a fairly steep gravel hill, which was blocked at its base by a locked gate. We were informed our sleeping quarters were at the top of this significant incline. By the light of a very dim flashlight, we unloaded our bags from the trailer. Each student and chaperone carried a large garbage bag with their sleeping bag and pillow in it, along with a duffel bag containing their clothes. Up the hill, through the mud and snow, we trudged

—Chaplain Cindy

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