The Tribune

By Rev Angela C Bosfield Palacious

This is the time in the Church’s year when we think of the journey of the wise men or magi to find the Christ child. They follow a star for quite some time until they are able to present their gifts to this newly born 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 worshiped 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 2:9-12 NIV).

Our life is a journey that also involves following leads, selecting a destination, and the offering of gifts. Let us explore this further.

When we are born, we follow the example of the significant adults in our life. This is why all adults have the weighty responsibility of nurturing the next generation by engaging in wholesome and godly life-styles. As we grow, we select friends who will influence us, and model ourselves after teachers whom we have come to admire. Eventually, we make a decision to follow a particular path such as: God’s call to a committed life, advertisements that flaunt a materialistic and consumer-oriented vision, some guru who attests to being god, or any other “star” that appears (movie, rock, sports).

In following the star, the magi went towards the east until they arrived in Bethlehem. We too have to determine our life direction and the final destination that we hope to attain. If it is heaven, then there are certain guides and guidelines that we have to follow, or we will become hopelessly lost.

The Word of God is a bright light that reveals who God has been, is, and wants to be in our generation. Prayer is the ongoing contact that we maintain with ‘heavenly headquarters’ like GPS that enables us to be directed by the will of God. Worship occurs every time we stop and remember Who it is that loved us enough to send a Son to be born among us, to live with us, to die for us, and be resurrected to raise us up at the last day.

The gifts we bring to God are our lives, including our relationships, labours, finances, talents and everything else that come from God in the first place. The gifts we give to each other are determined by need and generosity.

What do you think that parents, spouses, children, friends, colleagues and others wish most from you as a gift to them in their present season of life? I would venture to suggest the following as a way to begin your list:

1. Parents: respect, gratitude, obedience (where appropriate), and concern

2. A spouse: faithfulness, forgiveness, sensitivity, intimacy and companionship

3. Children: love, appreciation, understanding and discipline with fairness

4. Friends: loyalty, affirmation and confidentiality

5. Colleagues: hard work, affability and honesty

There are others who are looking to us for gifts as well and they need our ongoing generosity: the sick, lonely, bereaved, imprisoned, orphaned, and destitute. Jesus says what we do for this group is what we do for him, because they cannot reciprocate. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’” (Matthew 25:34-36NIV ). Become a gift today.

• 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.