The Young Family Farm

Matthew 2:12 “And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

After the Magi had spent time with young Jesus and his family–the time came for them to return to their homes. The Lord had led them to Jesus by the star. You can imagine they hoped to return the same way they got there. Isn’t that the easiest thing to always do? I don’t know about you–but when I go to a new, unfamiliar place–I always try to drive back home in the same way I came. So, I can imagine when they found out they would have to take a completely new–possibly even more difficult route home–they were wide-eyed. The Bible doesn’t tell us anything other than they went another route. They didn’t go back the familiar way. They knew they needed to again obey God for their own safety and for the safety of Jesus.

Some times a harder route is simply God’s grace and goodness over us–just as a different route was God’s grace and goodness over the wise men. We have to trust Him even in the hard times—that when we are His children, He is for us…and if He is for us, then who can be against us? Praying as you journey through 2012 and hard things come–you will remember this part of the Magi’s journey and it’s purpose…and that one day you will see His grand plan and the purpose of the hard parts too. In 2012 don’t expect to take the same route that you took in 2011.

The wise men worshiped Jesus–and they knew God’s voice. The more we worship Jesus–the more we will know His voice and be able to follow Him in the new ways He wants to lead us. The wise men also show us that God will often lead us BEYOND our own understanding–differently from the ways and patterns He has led us in the past. There will often be risks involved–but as we listen to Him, we will know which way to go–and ultimately it is the way that bring Him the most glory, protect us from harm and help us stay in His perfect, good and pleasing will for our lives. Let us be open to walking in new directions–down roads that are unfamiliar to us when He calls us–and worshipping Him along the way.

How did you see Jesus today on your journey?

Dear God, Thank you for what you are teaching us through the lives of the men you called to bring glory to your Son–the wise men. Thank you for showing us through them how you some times do take us on unexpected turns and in unknown territory–but it is for our good and for your glory. You can be trusted! Thank you for loving us and for taking care of us. In Your Son’s name we pray. Amen.

Matthew 2:11b “Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”

One of my utmost favorite things to do as a mom–is making stories come to life to my children. If you are a good friend–then you have seen my story telling and the animation that goes into every story they hear. You want a good story to tell your children? Well, today’s Journey with the Magi will have them listening, learning and on the edge of their seats in amazement at how detailed and purposeful our God is! I don’t know another way to explain how to tell your children this…other than exactly how I told mine…so here goes…

Now–as you know the Magi had just finished worshiping Jesus…they were on their knees—and it was time to present the gifts they carried and protected for almost a thousand miles…over desert and valley and even through times of peace and war. Finally they were here–and can you imagine how excited they were?! Don’t you remember the feeling in your hearts??? When you have found the PERFECT gift…the gift you feel God Himself laid on your heart to surprise someone you couldn’t wait to see with—they thought they would RUN right up and give Jesus the gifts when they saw Him…but their hearts were overwhelmed His presense and they worshipped Him first.

Now while we know very little of where these wise men are truly from–tradition has passed down where many in the early church said they were from. And OH MY–were they long awaited for!!! Even books in the Bible said they would come!!! Psalm 72:10-11 “The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts, the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute. All kings shall pay their homage, all nations shall serve Him.” Isaiah 60:6…”Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; all from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense and proclaiming the praises of the Lord.” CRAZY that even the old testament said they would come…many, many, many years before Mary or Joseph or Jesus Himself was ever born!!! AND although we don’t know exactly where they were from tradition in the early church has said one was from Ethiopia…another possibly from Iran or Eqypt…some have said the east (China). Since the 7th century–they have been identified as Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar—and there is even a historical document written in 735 that tells us a little bit about each of them. NOW…keep in mind this isn’t written in the scriptures–but this could possibly be who they are…and we do know their gifts and what they meant…so let’s meet them!

First–meet Melchior…it is said he was a very old man with white hair and a long beard (Parker and Laney think we need to paint this one now:)(So…this is the younger Melchoir). It is said that Melchoir brought GOLD.

GOLD? Can you IMAGINE?! Oh my!!! Gold was meant for KINGS!!! Kings were the ones who had all the gold…and they were the ones that received gold as gifts in their honor. Can you imagine—I mean…really–can you IMAGINE what Mary was thinking? “MY SON??? You are giving Him gold. Gold is for kings…gold is for KINGS…it is TRUE–my son…the KING of KINGS!” He brought the gold and there he laid it at this baby’s feet. A gift for a KING…

Then…came Caspar. Caspar was said to be young and beardless and to have a ruddy complexion…(Yep–you guess it…Laney and Parker want to take away his beard now:)It is said the Caspar brought frankincense.

FRANKINCENSE??? Well…lemme tell you about this one! Frankincense comes from a tree called Boswellia…you create frankincense by slashing the tree–making it bleed resin and the resin eventually hardens which they call tears. Many priests would burn the tears–or FRANKINCENSE as an offering and it was also used for anointing by priests. SO…frankincense was something priests owned and others offered to priests as a sacrificial offering for anointing. He brought this gift that belonged to priests…and laid it at Jesus’s little tiny feet. Again…can’t you hear Mary’s wondering, “For my son??? A priest? He will be a KING and a PRIEST!?” Oh how this mom I’m sure was treasuring this all in her heart!

Then came Balthasar, black-skinned and bearded…(Laney and Parker had just about had it—they insisted we paint Balthasar…so we added a quick craft session to our devotion time last year on this night:)This Magi is said to be from Ethiopia…and he came last. He brought the gift of myrrh and laid it at his feet.

MYRRH??? “Oh wait,” Mary thought. “There must have been a mistake. Myrrh? For my little one? Maybe that was all this kind Magi had to give. Did he mean to give me this?” You guys know the feeling…you have gotten a gift before you just weren’t sure was really meant for YOU. But you are polite and you accept it. Mary thought more, “Why would this sweet soul bring us myrhh? This is what we use to heal wounds…to put on our loved ones when they die…to put in their bodies after death to keep them perserved a bit longer…he’s just a baby…” And I have a feeling Mary again–treasured these things in her heart.

As a family–take time to go back through the gifts and let them marvel in how they RELATED to Jesus…how they really were intended just for Him. Gifts for the King of Kings…the most High Priest (after all…when he was cruicified–the curtain would be torn and no longer would the high priest have to be the one who spoke on behalf of the people to God…ANYONE could because THE High Priest had come!) And…the myrrh…hard to take in…BUT take heart—because HE has overcome the world and through Him we have a relationship with Him…and life eternal.

Dear God,
Thank you for sending Jesus–to be our KING, to be our High Priest and to be the Lamb of God–to die for us so we might have eternal life. What a gift!!! We, too, want to come and bring our gifts to You Lord. Help us use our gifts for Your glory and to bring others to know You. Amen.

How did you see Jesus today??? Ask Him to speak to you, work through you and love through you as the day goes on. Ask Him to fill Your cup today–with His Holy Spirit…and to shine His presence through your life.

Blessings to you all today!

P.S. We’ll be doing Day 7 on Monday! So, if you are following along with us on the Journey of the Magi…see you then! Happy New Year!!!

Today is the 4th day in our Journey with the Magi. The children run to find them…to see how far they have traveled…and we sit and remember…

The Magi–they had made QUITE a name for themselves. Word spread throughout the nations that there were 3 distinguished, wise men who would stop at nothing to visit a baby said to be the Messiah. Through desserts and battles–hungry and tired–they made their way. As the months passed many would tell stories of their seeing the magi themselves. And before long–Kind Herod himself heard of their quest to see a soon-to-be king—and his not wanting anyone to be ruler other than himself–he knew the only way to find this king–would be to call in the three men who were said to know the way.

Matthew 2:3-10 “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where Christ was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'” Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.”

I remember the FIRST time I read this story to my children. They began shouting, “Herod was tricking! Herod was tricking!” Yes–this is true. Herod did NOT really want to see and worship baby Jesus. We know this–but in the moment…the wise men did not. The wise men had traveled through hardship to finally feel as if they were being favored and welcomed in the presence of the king. Being summoned by King Herod and asked to help him would have been an honor–and they believed him as they had no reason not to. God didn’t unveil Herod’s dishonesty to them until later to protect them as well.

It would not be until a dream later they learn otherwise, but for now–remember they didn’t know any different. I’m sure when they discovered the truth, they felt deceived and even couldn’t believe that they were almost used to reveal the location of Jesus to the very ruler who wanted to kill him out of jealousy. The ONE man who wanted to do away with Jesus was able to talk with the 3 who knew where Jesus was. What are the chances?! What the enemy meant for evil–God would use for good. (Over and over again we see this in scripture–how what man means for evil God can turn around and use for His good! Remember Joseph and his brothers–and Joseph’s words: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.”Genesis 50:20 What a beautiful picture of Christ to come!).

Herod was “tricking”!

He intended to use the wise men to find baby Jesus who he felt would be a threat to his place in the kingdom. The wise men told them exactly how they were getting there and exactly what direction they were going in. They even agreed to come back and get King Herod after they located him! BUT THIS–this was NOT in God’s plan. And nothing can thwart (change) God’s plan!

Isaiah 14:27 says, “For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?”

The Lord Almighty had a purpose for the wise men–and ultimately for Jesus Christ–and not even the king of the land could change that! The wise men never took their eyes off the Lord and they continued to follow the star He told them to. In the right time, when God knew the wise men would understand–He would reveal what He needed the wise men to know about Herod to protect them and for His ultimate plan.

The Lord has called us to be wise and to put our trust in Him alone. There will be times in our own lives when we are lied to or someone tries to trick us into doing something that isn’t in the Lord’s plan–and that is why it is so important for us to keep our eyes focused on Jesus and to put or trust in Him alone. We have to be careful not to listen or trust just anyone because of who they are or who they say they are–and ask the Lord for discernment and peace in the way He has chosen for us to go. The wise men would have much to risk by not obeying the king’s orders—but they had much more to risk if they didn’t obey the Lord.

The wise men are getting closer to the manger…

They have seen the star—and tomorrow will be grand as they worship this babe they have traveled through desert, storm, army to get to him…for weeks, months and quite possibly over a year. And when they drop to their knees in worship…their hearts will know the journey was worth it. I can’t wait to share this tomorrow with the littles!!! I think a few songs about the Magi will be in order!

Dear God,
We thank you that NOTHING can change your plans! We ask that you would be over all the details of our lives and that you would give us wisdom in the way to go. We ask for discernment when someone tells us something we are not sure about–and that ultimately we would hear from you and be obedient to you. Thank you for being BIGGER than any problem or person that would attempt to change your plans! How exciting to know you have a plan for our lives that no one can touch as we trust in you! Amen.