From fear and worry to being held by God

Amy Butterworth was content with life, and from the outside seemed to have it all. But a seemingly trivial decision to attend a carol service last Christmas changed her life forever

On the face of it we had everything: a nice house, good jobs, two beautiful children. People would look at us and think, “They aren’t searching for anything.” But we didn’t realise that we had a gaping, faith-shaped hole.

Then at Christmas last year, I was on my way to work in my role as a family support worker for people with substance use issues. As I was walking through Peckham Rye station in south London I heard some people singing – it was the choir from the local church. It was 8am and I was in a rush but I felt compelled to stop and listen for a few minutes; it was really, really beautiful. I felt so moved and, as I left to get my train, I popped a flyer for their carol service in my bag.