When you’re on a hunt for
something of value, a treasure hunt, how do you feel? What are you experiencing
emotionally?
I know that when I’m on the hunt
for something of value there’s a sense of excitement, maybe some anxiety too
because I might not find what I’m looking for.
Just picture yourself as one of
the Magi. Think about how they must have felt when they discovered the star and
in their research found that it meant a new king had been born.
Think about the talks they must
have had planning, arguing, negotiating what to take, what not to take, what
route to take, how many servants, all that they’d need for a journey that they
had no idea how long it was or how much time it would take.
And think about all the
different people and characters they’d meet. Some would be helpful and some,
I’m sure, would make you fear for your life.
Think of all the people they had
to trust, even King Herod. Kings can be kind of hard to read, especially Herod
and his reputation for killing people he thought might be in his way.
So, we’re on a journey called
life. As Christians we’re also seeking the Savior, Jesus. Sometimes it’s not so
easy to find Him.
We talk to folks, we ask
questions of religious people, we read books, we read the Bible, we pray, we
seek, we hope.
Where do we find Jesus? Can we
find him in this building? Is he out there in our community? Or…is he inside
us, gently, and sometimes not so gently, pushing us to get on with the work and
get out of our comfort zones? Is Jesus the one who leads us to those chance
encounters with some very strange people and is he the one who turns those
encounters into blessings?
If we’re on the wrong road is he
the one who shows us a different way? Maybe we need to tune our hearing so that
we can hear his voice as he speaks to our hearts helping us to understand and
trust in him.
Maybe that’s why at this time of
the season, winter, that we celebrate the birth of the Savior, to discover the
real riches that Christ and Christmas brings to us. It’s a good time of the
year to just be and let time and light and love penetrate the darkness and show
us the way home.
Thanks be to God for his grace.
Amen.
