THE MAGI

This weekend Christians everywhere celebrated the feast of the Epiphany, or the day of the Three Kings.  No one knows for sure who they were, magi, kings or wise men or how many there were. What we do know is that these people were the first Gentiles (foreigners) to see the face of Jesus, the Son of God.  Wow!  What an experience that must have been. Finding this little toddler, probably around 2 years, and experiencing an Epiphany, a wow, words cannot describe, a take your breath away moment, that would eventually change their lives forever.
They were so amazed by Him, that they gave Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And in giving these particular gifts they were foretelling the destiny of this special Child.  As we ponder on the words of the familiar carol it explains in detail what each gift represented. Gold- (king) “King forever ceasing never, over us all to reign.”
Frankincense- (priest)“incense own a Deity nigh, worship Him, God on high.”
Myrrh-(death) it's bitter perfume Breaths a life of gathering gloom.
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding dying, Sealed in the stone-cold tomb.
Their journey began by following a star, a light in the sky and even though the road was not easy and sometimes dangerous, they never stopped following that star, and through their perseverance and an unshakeable faith they eventually reached their destination, and found the house of Jesus.
As Christians by reason of our Baptism, we are like these Magi. We have been given the light of Jesus as our guiding star, and even though the path of Christian life is not easy and at times dangerous, if we continue to  follow His light and persevere with an unshakeable faith, we too will reach our final destination, Jesus's new home, Heaven.

peace2u

January fun facts

Here are some interesting facts about January.

Most of the world uses the Georgian calendar, which has January as the first month of the year. It is named for Janus, a Roman god. Roman legend has it that the the ruler Numa Pompilius added January and February to the end of the 10-month Roman calendar in about 700 B.C. Pompilius gave the month 30 days. Romans later made January the first month. In 46 B.C., the Roman statesman Julius Caesar added a day to January, making it 31 days long. The Anglo-Saxons called the first month Wolfmonth because wolves came into the villages in winter in search of food.

In the northern half of the world, January is the coldest month. Nature is quiet and the birds travel less. The woodchucks and bears sleep day and night, in hibernation. The plants are resting, waiting for the warmer temperatures of the Spring. In the southern half of the world, January is the warmest month. Animals are very active, and plants are growing.

peace2u