Seeking Jesus in the New Year
Presents were opened, cookies were eaten, and family was visited: we did it. We made it through another Christmas without our husbands. It’s no small feat to survive the holidays after the death of a spouse, yet here we are on the other side.
As the world shifts from Christmas celebrations to New Year’s resolutions, our sense of wonder at Jesus’ birth can quickly fade. Life returns to normal and the start of a new year brings all kinds of complicated emotions. For those whose husbands died recently, it’s hard to start a new year without them. The constant march of time is painful when each day takes you farther from their presence. We who’ve grieved longer experience mixed emotions and swirling questions: Is this the year we’ll finally “get over'' our grief and learn to live fully again? Will we be blindsided by more loss and finally succumb to our grief, unable to carry on? Or will this be the year that we will get a new job, new home, new exercise routine, or even a new relationship that unlocks the door to thriving after loss?
As I’ve pondered what the coming year may hold, my mind has turned many times to the story of the wisemen. Their presence in the Christmas narrative has been reorienting my heart to what matters most as we start a new year.
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.” (Matthew 2:1-12)
Though our nativity scenes often include wisemen presenting gifts to baby Jesus, scholars estimate that 2 years passed between his birth and their arrival. The wonder and awe Mary and Joseph experienced on the night of his birth had likely faded as life went on. It’s safe to assume their days were filled with the normal stuff of life: work, worship, putting food on the table, and likely another baby on the way. For a time, their promised child’s birth didn’t seem to change all that much.
Until the day foreign men arrived at King Herod’s royal palace, asking to see the one who “has been born to be king of the Jews.” Herod, whose lack of kingly lineage made him paranoid and vulnerable, assembled the chief priests and scribes to find out where the Jewish Messiah’s birth was prophesied to take place. With their impeccable knowledge of scripture they answered him: Bethlehem.
They had the right information, but their hearts were numb to the wonder of it all. Unlike the foreigners who traveled a great distance to find a promised king, these experts of Jewish scripture showed no excitement. Despite having access to the prophecies about the coming Messiah, they missed the significance of his coming. Instead of dropping everything and running to find him, they merely helped King Herod send the travelers in the right direction and returned to religious service as usual.
In contrast, the foreign born wisemen continued their pursuit and saw God in the flesh. Though Jesus was just a young child, they recognized him as the True King and fell down and worshiped him. With “exceedingly with great joy”, they offered expensive gifts to Jesus and at risk of their own lives, defied the orders of King Herod and refused to return and reveal Jesus’ location. It’s an incredible response from the unlikeliest of worshippers!
I confess my heart’s response to Jesus can be more like the Jewish leaders. His birth, which felt special in December, can feel irrelevant in January as we get back to the “real world.” Our concerns loom large: work; parenting; adjusting to life as a widow; figuring out who we are without our husbands; carrying the full weight of our households. We stop looking for Jesus and start searching for other people and things to make our load lighter and the new year brighter.
What if we committed this year to being more like the wisemen? What if instead of running to new places, jobs, and relationships, we slowed down and sought out Jesus first and foremost? What if this is the year we behold him more clearly and worship him more truly, whether our hands are empty or our arms are full?
There will always be those who mark Jesus’ arrival and move on to their “regular” lives. I pray that we will be women who continue to behold him with wonder, far beyond Christmas and into the new year.
In Him,
