Wonder

I have always found such joy and comfort by looking up at the sky. It reminds me of the vast creativity and power of our Creator God. He has an enduring plan that stays in place through generations, like the placement of the stars, and a new and ever changing beauty for every day, like the variety of color displays that are revealed in every sunset.
At Christmas time, in the northern hemisphere where I live, even more than at other times of the year the cold air makes the day skies vivid and the shapes of the clouds awesome and whimsical: It makes the night sky moon unusually bright white and the myriad of stars brilliantly shine and shimmer. 
The faithfulness of God is what I see and feel as I take a moment to look up and see what is in His heavens…the wonders to behold.

Of the wonders of Christmas that the Bible tells us happened with the birth of the Jesus Christ, I find myself thinking of the verse in Luke 2:13,14. I imagine what it would have been like to be a Shepherd and to look up and see the multitude of angels filling the skies with the declarations of “Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, goodwill to men” …A wonder of wonders!!

And I think of those far away who were looking at the sky as well.The learned and priestly men from Persia who were trusted advisors to Kings:They were scientists and historians and even practitioners of paranormal arts. These were men very acquainted with the nuances of the skies, with understanding the “language of the stars”. I imagine what it would have been like being one of the most wise and intelligent of the time, seeing the unique appearance of this incredible Star, the Star of Bethlehem, in the night sky.
What a thrilling moment. Like seeing a shooting Star times a 1000! Like looking through the great telescopes today and discovering something never seen before…yet expected to exist.
What a wonder!! A wonder that communicated something  so amazing was happening in the earth. So much so that they followed it, making a very long journey from Persia to ultimately Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2 “But You , Bethlehem Ephratah, though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall He come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from old, from ancient times.”)

In the Bible, the main Old Testament scripture about the Star foretold at the birth of Our Savior is in Numbers 24:17, “ I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near. A Star will come out of Jacob; A scepter will rise out of Israel.”

But there are more that reference how the Magi would see the Star and come to worship the baby Jesus because of the Star.

Isaiah 60:3,6 “ Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn…herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah, and all from Sheba will come bearing gold and incense and proclaiming praise of the Lord”

Isaiah 49:7 “This what the Lord says, the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel…Kings will see you and rise up, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord Who is faithful and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose you.”

Psalm 72:10,11 “The Kings of Tarshish and distant shores will bring tribute to Him. The kings of Sheba and Sheba will present him with gifts. All kings will bow down to Him and all nations will serve Him.”

Every Christmas we are reminded of this wonder in the Biblical Christmas story. From the Shepherds to the Magi we see God’s birth announcement proclaimed in the heavens. I find it truly wonderful that God’s faithfulness to His Promise and His love for all the world was so vividly displayed in the heavens for all on earth to see at the moment that Jesus was born so many years ago.

My prayer is that we will take time this Christmas to look up and truly see His daily wonders and receive the Joy and Blessing available to all of us this Christmas season as we join God’s creation in celebration of the birth of His Son Jesus Christ…Our Wonderful Savior.