A Christmas reflection to the AEA Family and fellow believers in Christ.

As Christmas comes around in 2025, many of us are preparing to celebrate the commemoration of the birth of Jesus, through worship, family gatherings, and familiar traditions. As much as it is a season of joy, it must also be a season that invites us to stop and reflect.

The story of Christmas is simple and yet deeply challenging.

Jesus was born into the world knowing where that road was leading; to suffer, die and to rise again.

The child laid in a manger would one day carry the cross. From the very beginning, His life was given for the sake of others. Love, humility, and sacrifice were and are embedded in His story.

This matters, especially as we look at our world today. Across Africa, Christmas will be marked very differently this year. In places like the DRC, Sudan, Nigeria, Burundi, and beyond, families have been forced from their homes by war and violence. Many Christians continue to face persecutions because of their faith. Young people, carrying heavy disappointment and few opportunities, are risking dangerous journeys across seas and borders in search of a future. For them, Christmas may feel distant, even painful.

And yet, the Christmas story meets us right there. Jesus was born into uncertainty. His family knew fear. They fled their home in the first two years of His incarnation to survive. He understands what it means to be displaced, misunderstood, and vulnerable. The hope of Christmas is not that life suddenly becomes easy, but that God chose to come close amidst brokenness.

– This season calls us to reflect.

– ⁠To pray more deeply.

– ⁠It asks us to remember that following Christ means paying attention to those who are suffering, standing with them, and trusting God even when answers are not clear.

As the Association of Evangelicals in Africa, we give thanks for how God has sustained us throughout this year—through service, advocacy, and faithful witness across our nations. At the same time, Christmas reminds us that our calling continues. The love shown in the manger is the love we are called to live out every day.

May this Christmas draw us closer to Christ Himself. May it soften our hearts, deepen our prayers for Africa, and renew our hope in God’s redeeming work. And may the peace that Christ brings take root in us, even in difficult times.

I wish you and your families a thoughtful, prayerful, and Christ-centred Christmas.

.

Dr Master O. Matlhaope

The Secretary General,

Association of Evangelicals in Africa (AEA).