Rejoicing exceedingly with great joy! What makes you dance up and down with excitement and joy? When do you experience the giddy excitement that makes you want to laugh out loud like you did when you were a kid? Sometimes I wish that I could have been a fly on the wall when the magi arrived. I wonder what the conversations were like: what questions were asked…how many people were in the entourage…how long did they stay… Only Matthew records the encounter in his gospel. And there's more written about their encounter with Herod then there is about their visit with Mary and Joseph. In Matthew uses four greek words To show their reaction when they arrived They rejoiced exceedingly with great joy! i.e. they jumped up and down with joy! They had found what they were looking for: a king. Unlike Herod, they were not threatened by his arrival, quite the opposite. They rejoiced! I was walking through the grocery store this week, and Christmas is already off the shelves. We have moved on... Time for whatever is next. The joy of Christmas is gone. I actually felt a twinge of sadness and grief. For those who follow Jesus, the Christmas season is in full swing! Yes. I am one of those people that wishes store clerks and friends and strangers a Merry Christmas all the way through Epiphany. Traditionally, this is when we celebrate the magi arriving and bringing their gifts to Jesus. In fact, in many cultures, gifts aren't exchanged until the Feast of the Epiphany. So I want to encourage you to continue to celebrate. Keep playing those Christmas carols (especially the ones the talk about the birth of Jesus). Don't be afraid to wish people a Merry Christmas. The king has come...And it's time for dancing! Blessings,
Matthew+ O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (BCP p. 214) | 
