Sometimes, I miss things in plain sight; the bottle of hand lotion, my glass of water, or a book I literally set down ten seconds before. For some reason, my family often misses me sitting out in plain sight! I could be casually sitting in the corner of my bedroom, and someone comes in to do something or other; a few minutes go by, and suddenly, they jump!
"I didn't know you were in here! You scared me!"
And I was sitting right there.
You can learn a lot about the world just by paying attention. Moss grows thicker on the north side of a tree. Strips of tire on the side of the highway either mean a blow-out, or that a semi came through recently. People sometimes act crazy when they are under stress or uncomfortable.
Those that pay attention to the signs around them seem so much more in tune with life than the ones who are in their own little world. It's hard to miss beauty when you are looking for it, it's hard to skip over people when you are paying attention to their needs
A long time ago, an entire nation was waiting for their Messiah. There had been radio silence on the prophetic frequencies for hundreds of years, and yet, when their Messiah did arrive, the majority didn't even acknowledge Him for who He was.
Why?
Because they hadn't been looking for the signs. The Old Testament is riddled with prophecies about Jesus; signs and clues which were written to lead mankind to their Savior. Every single prophecy regarding Jesus came true, but few were paying attention enough to notice.
And now enter the Magi; three wise men from the Far East. They were not Jewish, but rather foreigners from a distant land. And yet, when the Messiah did arrive, they were there to greet him in his early years of childhood. What pieces of information did they have that Jesus's own people had somehow missed?
The answer is simple: the wise men were looking for the star.
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him." 2:1-2.These strangers from the far away land knew what was happening better than Judea's own residents. They had seen the star, they knew whose star it was, and they knew they must journey to come and worship the King.
The Magi were paying attention, they looked for signs and clues around them. When they found a sign, in this case the star, they did their homework. And what did their careful attention lead them to?
It led them to Jesus, the Savior of the world.
I want to be like the Magi, attentive to my world and the things that God has in store for me. I don't want to miss the signs around me, but rather, I want to find them and embrace the blessings and purpose laid out for me.
This year, I encourage us all to be looking for the star.
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