Matthew 2: 10-11
"And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.'
Can you visualize that sight? The moment the wise men were setting out to continue their journey, they saw that the light continued to shine on them. The knew that the God of the universe was smiling directly at them. They traveled on with great expectancy and urgency because they knew that they were close to where the Christ Child would be found. They were filled with so much joy that it could not be contained by any of them.
When I was a child my family occasionally traveled to central Florida to spend Christmas with my grandparents. Coming from central Illinois, and trying to make the best use of the time we were given for Christmas vacation, we always drove it in 24 hours. It was a grueling trip for my dad, who did all the driving. He often had to maneuver through snow, sleet, or ice, or even all three in order to not lose more than a day to travel travel time. In Tennessee he had to add driving through Lookout Mountain to the itinerary, and coming from a completely flat state, this was a big deal, especially if the weather was bad! Breakfast was usually somewhere in Georgia, and the moment we hit the Florida line and the sun began to shine brightly and warmly, the excitement would begin to build. With three children crammed in the back seat of our Chevy, loaded down with toys, blankets and pillows, and loaded up on sugar from the orange juice at the welcome center, dad had the most difficult part of the drive just ahead of him simply because of the uncontainable excitement of those children in the backseat who couldn't wait to get to Grandma and Granddad's house. The moment that we hit the two-lane road that led from the interstate to Lakeland, it would be a zoo. When we reached that spot, we kids knew that we were down to the last sixty minutes of the 24-hour drive. . . sixty minutes before we could jump into the arms of Granddad and be smothered with kisses from Grandma. As we passed each of the well-known 'guideposts,' the excitement grew to a near-frenzy until, at last, we pulled into their driveway, jumped out of the car, and ran to greet our awaiting grandparents.
The magi's experience was similar. They were close, so very close, yet not quite there. Joy burst forth from them with such rejoicing as they continued their trek to Bethlehem, to the place where they would soon gaze upon the Messiah, the Light of the World.
At last, at long last, they came to the place where Jesus was! They entered the house, and in sheer awe, joy, and ecstasy, they bowed down before the King of the Jews and poured out their heartfelt worship to Him. And just like when we visit relatives for Christmas, they 'opened up their treasures and presented to the Christ Child gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.' These were the very best gifts they had to give.
Is your joy level high as you approach the day that we celebrate the birth of your Savior? Is it pouring out from you and onto others? What gifts are you bringing Him this season? Have you considered giving Him the gift of YOURSELF and your worship? Or have you been wrapped up in the activities that bring the seasonal stress? Why not take several moments today to bring Him your gift. I promise, it will restore the excitement in you, like when you were a child waiting for Christmas Day to arrive. He is worthy of our delight and joy-filled hearts!"
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