Monday, December 29, 2014

Matthew 2:1-2, 10-11

After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign of King Herod, suddenly some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east asking, 'Where is the infant king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose and have come to do him homage.' … The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to their knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

Joy of the magi

Joy excites me this day. The joy of the magi awakens joy in me … and a resolution to seek joy in each season of the new year.

The joyful heart eagerly gives itself away to bless and love, to serve and worship. No external command dropped the magi to their knees. They knelt in the dirt because their hearts required it. They had come to the end of their search for the child of the star, the pearl of great price.

The deep desire of their hearts found surprising fulfillment, and the inner door of their souls opened to generously pour out treasures of heart far more valuable than the gold they carried.

Joy comes when the soul finds fulfillment, when it knows the Love from whom it came. It is then that the heart fills and pours itself out in acts of extravagant generosity. In moments of great love, the Love that lies sleeping within the soul awakens to life and must be given away … with great joy.

It has always been this way. People moved to extraordinary acts of service and giving do so to express the joy within them. They act from full hearts, joyfully pouring out the Love awakened within them

We cannot give ourselves joy, but we can seek to see … in every place and circumstance … the presence of goodness and grace … the Presence of the One who is Love … that this Love may awaken the Love that abides within.

Knowing this Love, joy fills and frees the soul to become its full beauty.

We can live with our eyes fixed on the ever-present pain and ugliness of this world, becoming discouraged and cynical. Or we can see with eyes trained to seek the Love who is present everywhere and every place. We can seek to see that our souls may live with joy, giving and celebrating the Love who lives everywhere.

The choice is always ours. One way leads to life … and makes every new year a time when joy can abound.

Pr. David L. Miller