Starlight

This afternoon I was fiddling with a new star-shaped Christmas tree topper, and I couldn't get it to stand up right on the top stem of our artificial tree. The wiry limb was just too flimsy to hold the weight of the new ornament, and in my frustration I said to my son, "I don't know. I think we'll just have to put a bow on top of the tree." He immediately responded incredulously, "But, Mama, bows don't have anything to do with Christmas!"

How cool is that? He was thinking about the Star of Bethlehem and not packages and bows. Even though he's got a Christmas list a mile long, when it came to the significance of our tree topper, he was focused on the true meaning of Christmas and really wanted a star to shine on top.

Of course, upon hearing such wisdom come from the mouth of my own offspring, I committed myself to finding a way to make the star stand up tall on top of our tree. Where there's a will there's a way, and I did indeed find a way. A couple of small wooden craft sticks and a few forest green pipe cleaners (to match the tree, of course) formed a supporting brace for the deficient limb, which now is festively adorned with a shiny, gold star.

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him."

Matthew 2: 1-2