Today’s reading: Mathew 2:9-10
“And so they left, and on their way they saw the same star…”
The familiar story of the Wise Men contains a subtle truth that is often overlooked. The fact is that the star they were seeking to follow was obvious to anyone who would look in the sky. Yet only three astrologers of that time saw it for what it was, a sign of God’s activity in the world. The difference between the multitude who overlooked it and their attention to it is a matter of faith. They were looking for signs of God’s activity. In short only the eyes of faith can see God’s activity in the world. That is as true today as it was then.
I would suggest this is a truth we need to rediscover today. To see where God is actively engaged in our world, we too need to see the signs. And to see the signs, like the wise men, we need to have a faith that looks for them. The problem we face today is that there are so many signs demanding our attention that without the eyes of faith, the important ones are easily missed. The mass media of our era numb us to the many places wherein God is working the miracle of human redemption. So what might the eyes of faith see as a sign of God’s ongoing activity in our world?
An example might be the TV series Pit Bulls and Paroles which airs on the Animal Planet channel. This is a series about a woman and her family who run a dog rescue facility outside New Orleans. But she doesn’t just rescue dogs. A key element is that she hires recently released paroles and teaches them how to take care of the animals, giving them the start to a new and redeemed life. I find it difficult to watch this show and not see God’s actions incarnated in a human being’s life. And is that not the truth revealed in Jesus’ birth? God’s actions are done through human lives lived in faithful service to the world. As Jesus states in John 14:12 – “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact will do greater works than these.” NEV
Reflections 