1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
6 “ ‘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 shepherd my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
As I dropped my 6th grade son off at school early this morning for the national "see you at the pole" event I felt the Word come alive and very real. This week I have been reading in Matthew chapter 2 about how the different people responded to the news of the messiah's birth. Some were disturbed, some worshipful and others indifferent. As I drove away I couldn't help but pray for God's protection over him and the other students he stood with, knowing that this simple action of standing by the flag pole would possibly incite harsh words or actions from those who do not know or care to follow Jesus. I also had a sense of pride that at such a young age he feels courageous enough to stand for what he believes in (I wouldn't have been able to do it at that age!), and I found my prayer turn from protection to asking that God would bless him for his courage. Then my thoughts continued to go back to all the kids and adults that come in and out of the building day after day and again my prayer changed to that of the souls of each individual. That Jesus- Messiah, Immanuel, God with us- is His desire for each of them as well. My bigger prayer is that through this simple act of coming for a prayer at the flag pole before school this morning that God would hear the prayers of the children, that He would show Himself to all the individuals that don't yet know Him, that they would see Him and choose to know Him.
I love that His Word is living and ministering to me always! Praying that as we all seek and study His Word this week it would be alive and relevant in all our lives!
