The Tribune

By Rev Angela C Bosfield Palacious

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’

“Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.

“After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.” (Matthew 2: 1-2, 7-12).

The Magi followed a star that led them to worship the Messiah. They came a long distance focused on a goal to experience a rare moment in time.

What star are we following? It is easy to get lost in times like these. There are so many false guides. We are called to follow the star that leads to a place of blessing, into the very presence of God Almighty. In this Christmas and Epiphany season, we are called to question the direction in which we are heading. Is it toward Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord?

In our personal lives, are we following the path of integrity, or is the word integrity an empty one that seems impractical? Every decision we make takes us in a particular direction.

I hope that our political leaders will never be pressured to make the end justify the means, and I pray that they will always speak the truth, defend just causes, apologise when wrong, be fair, and exercise wise judgement. May they be more generous this year than they have ever been to members of their constituency, even those who are not known to be supporters. May they be sincere in their care and concern, not doing anything to just win votes but to glorify God. May they inspire people to work hard to build up this nation.

Like Bethlehem, we are a small place but from us has already come world leaders. Let us follow the Lord and lead our children to holy leadership known around the world as a people of spiritual maturity. Let us with great joy, grasp every legitimate and morally upright opportunity to grow and develop, even as we heal from historical hurts.

To church leaders, I hope that we all remember that God has called us to bring others into the kingdom. Our highest priority must be their salvation. Everything has to point back to God. All of our programmes and projects are to build up God’s kingdom. Christmas is the introduction of the Messiah into the plan. Easter is the resurrection that precedes our own. The Ascension is the way we all go to be with the Lord wherever he is.

Wherever we are, as individuals, let us all remember that we have a loving God who sees and knows all things, and wants us to enjoy the reward of faithfulness. Just follow the right star.

• Rev Angela Palacious, a motivational speaker and author of several devotional books, is an Anglican priest. She may be contacted at 393-9000 or by e-mail at angelapalacious@gmail.com.