As the planets in the sky have blazed
While we stood in awe, amazed,
As we peer into worlds unknown
Where is the path that leads us home?
Lord, You are the truth, the life, the way
The Spirit who leads and guides each day.
The future leads through uncertain place
We are in desperate need of grace.
And as we on Your life do gaze
Our lives in words and deeds shall praise
Your love, your courage as our fears you faced
We journey on this path that first you traced.
On this past winter solstice, December 21, 2020, those of us fortunate enough to have a clear sky caught a glimpse of Jupiter and Saturn, the two largest planets in our solar system in the best conjunction since 1226 AD. The effect is that of a bright star, dubbed a Christmas star.
Was there something similar in their starry night sky that prompted the wise men to journey to find a king? We wonder if we can trace the path of our past and future in the stars, or whether we really are made of stardust. We wonder what earth’s future is in this one galaxy, itself among many other galaxies. We are on a journey, and it seems earth itself is travelling, too.
As we ponder our place in this universe, our paths seem earthbound, mundane. Daily walks have become more complicated as we zigzag our way around each other to maintain pandemic social distance, a kind of “2020s shuffle.” The old Family Circle featured cartoons that tracked a child’s random path around a neighbourhood. Who knows? Maybe someday we will be able to download a similar history of our lifetime “travels,” from a recording GPS.
There are times when the path has been arduous, or frightening, or seemed to go nowhere. But we are comforted in knowing that we have a companion who pioneered our earthly and celestial ways. It is this same Jesus who now prepares the destination, and who will be welcoming us home.
