I have been reading Stephen Cottrell's book "Walking
Backwards to Christmas" in which he explores the Christmas story from the
perspective of some of the more peripheral characters. He is looking for new angles, new
messages. The fourth chapter focuses on
Casper, the traditional name of one of the (again traditionally) three wise men
or kings who went in search of the infant Jesus with their gifts of gold,
frankincense and myrrh.
Casper describes himself as a stargazer. Adopting Casper's identity, Stephen Cottrell
writes: "Most people learn to look down.
Not me. I would not let my
horizon shift. So there are obstacles in
the path? Let them trip me up. Better to keep looking upwards, to chase
after dreams and stumble, than only ever see the few steps in front of you and
spend a lifetime going round in circles, getting nowhere fast. That is me: a dream-chaser, a stargazer, a
misfit and a seer, a student of the cosmos and the galaxies."
These ideas about looking up, about chasing the dream offer
an incredibly helpful perspective. It is
true that we too easily get dragged down and that we lose our sense of
direction. The wise men of old were
entirely convinced that God had them on a journey that was worth
completing. They were very much chasing
the dream. We need to have more faith
about what God has in store for us - and that will happen if we look up and to
God. That's the journey we need to be
on.
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