HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Yesterday in worship we celebrated Epiphany. We heard the story of the Magi and were invited us to consider the stars that show up in our lives.

How do we know they are God drawing near or a distraction away from God? Epiphany means revelation, the moment when something hidden becomes visible.

When God is not just believed in, but recognized. The Magi notice that something in the sky has shifted and instead of dismissing it, they pay attention. They stop. They follow.

Epiphany is not just about a star long ago. It’s about learning how to recognize God’s nearness now especially in a world crowded with flashing lights, loud voices, and urgent demands for our attention.

The Epiphany story in Matthew gives us a pattern.

First: When God draws near, power loosens its grip. The Magi kneel. Herod is frightened. God’s nearness does not require domination to be effective. When something claims divine purpose but depends on violence, control, or fear to work, Matthew invites us to stop and pay attention again.

Second: When God draws near, as Christians, it looks like Jesus. The star does not lead to a palace or an army. It leads to a child. Truth without cruelty. Love without exclusion. Holiness that makes room. God’s nearness never contradicts the life and way revealed in Christ.

Third: When God draws near, it moves toward people, not away from them. The Magi do not escape the world. They enter it more deeply. They travel dangerous roads. They accept risk. They place themselves closer to vulnerability, not further from it. God does not hover above suffering. God shows up among those who bear it

Fourth: When God draws near, it asks something real of us. Not admiration. Not agreement. But change. The Magi open their treasures. They risk Herod’s anger. They go home another way. God’s nearness always rearranges lives. So when something lights up the sky, when it is loud and forceful and framed as necessary Matthew invites us not to ask, “Is this powerful?” but “Is this how God comes close?” Because in the story of Epiphany, God’s nearness does not arrive through destruction. It does not announce itself by terror. It does not need to break bodies to make a point.

Epiphany reminds us that God’s nearness doesn’t come through fear or control, but through closeness, through a presence just enough to be trusted and strong enough to transform us. And once you experience that kind of light, the question is no longer whether God is near. The question is whether we will dare to follow, and go home another way. This season of Epiphany, you are invited to be present to the ongoing revelation of Christ.