Wise Men

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ”
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. Matthew 2:1-12

Yesterday I flew from my home in Boston to my home in Montana. I always marvel at how different our places and spaces are, and how quickly we move from place to place. Some many of us notice so little, these days, distracted by our phones and other devices that we never even look up or notice the world. I always wonder how much more we would see if we took our time and noticed the world around us completely. There might be more artists in this world, there might be more songs and there definitely would be more poems and wonder.

The wise men from the east come to see Jesus after visiting with Herod. Their journey began when they observed the star. Then they had to travel many weeks and maybe months over hazardous terrain, through hostile regions and among people, cultures and languages so different from their own. All of this to find the child king, who became a dangerous threat to Herod. They found Jesus, after continuing to follow the star, with his humble parents, in their humble make shift dwelling, not being able to return home. This small family would become refugees because of the violent threats on the child's life. I imagine that those expensive gifts might have sustained that small family while in Egypt. God invites us today to  notice that strangers brought honor to the child, and that politics caused the living God to become a refugee. God invites us to take notice of our world, so that we might see the living presence of God among us today.

Today I ask God to help me pay attention to God's presence in my every moment. May we look up and see the stars that guide us and look around and see God's love among us.