My Three Gifts

Dear Jesus,

Ok, I’m just going to say it. Celebrating Epiphany this year was a little anti-climactic. Coming so quickly after New Year’s Day, it felt like the Christmas season was on fast forward with blurry highlights and very little time to sit and reflect on the deeper meaning. From the Your birth, to celebrating your Holy Family, to recognizing your mom as the Mother of God and the visit of the three wise men all in one week, I have been finding it hard to “ponder all these things in my heart” like your mother.

Don’t get me wrong. We had great family time and the food was amazing. The gifts surrounding the tree were many and appreciated. Mass was beautiful and uplifting. But, spiritually, I have just felt rushed and a bit empty. This was not my goal as I started my Advent journey and prepared to head into one of my favorite times of the year.

I guess you thought giving us some illness over the holidays might be the answer I needed to make me slow down and reflect. Can we talk about this? I really need to learn to make time myself, so our Father will not need to “help” me out so much. I’d much rather do this without any sickness and isolation.

Yet, here I sit, carving out quiet time with You. I’ve been reading all I can about the Epiphany from Matthew 2. It’s that one celebration at this time of year that I haven’t ever really done well. It usually just meant it was time to take down the tree.

But, today I started to ponder, if I were to come and meet You , as the Wise Men did, what would I bring? What would my gift look like? Scripture says they gave You gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I may have a bit of the first somewhere in the house, but the other two are not usually on my list of must haves. So, my gifts need to be more accessible for a woman in 2022.

I have heard that the gold represented Your Kingship and the frankincense, Your Priesthood. The myrrh, a spice used to anoint a body at death, symbolized the fact that You were to be the Sacrifice offered for all of us. So, keeping these things in mind, here’s my thinking.

My gold should be represented by the gift of my FREEDOM. What better can I bring my King, than my allegiance and the ability to follow Your will? May I listen to what you have to say and be willing to obey Your call on my heart.

My frankincense should be represented by the gift of my WORSHIP. May all I do this year bring You praise and glory. May my gifts and talents be offered to you so that they may be sanctified. And then, when they are put to use, they will draw others to worship the giver instead of the gift.

My myrrh should be represented by the gift of my SELF. May I offer up my selfish tendencies when it comes to my time, my comforts, my pride, and my feelings. Each time I live for others and die to self, may it be a gift to You showing that I am willing to give you everything.

Jesus, I kneel before you and offer my freedom, my worship, and my self to you just as the wise men did before me. But, I know that what I say in January when everything feels new and full of potential, will eventually lose its shine when the road gets harder and life gets busier. So, I pray that you will help me to keep this in my line of vision. Help me develop the habits of seeking Your Will, worshiping you freely with the gifts you have bestowed, and die to self each time I want to put me first.

Then maybe, next year when Epiphany rolls around, I will find that I have been changed. That I came to you by one path, but after meeting you, I followed a different way back home.

XOXO,

Barb