I was recently reminded about a poem written by Minnie Louise Haskins, and an excerpt from it, which was quoted by Queen Elizabeth’s father, George VI, in his 1939 Christmas radio address, at a time during World War II when things were very dark for England. Here are its encouraging words, which actually are a reflection on Jesus, the True Light (John 1:6-9):

The Gate of the Year

“God Knows”

“i said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: ‘Give me a light that I may tread softly into the unknown.’ And he replied: ‘Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.'”

King George concluded his radio address by saying,

“May that Almighty Hand guide and uphold us all.”