My Advent Calendar - Day 24

December 24^th

Welcome to Day 24 of my Advent Calendar, where I have been reliving my Coast to Coast adventure!

Afterthoughts

People walk for all sorts of reasons. Some because they have to, it’s their only mode of transport; others for exercise; some do it as a challenge; while for many it’s just a nice social thing to do with friends.

            Hannah and I walked the from one side of England to the other, a journey of fourteen days, for a holiday, strange I know, although we also did it for the challenge. We chose the Coast to Coast path, because it has a definite beginning and end. It has a place to start from and a goal to reach, and this is different to mere rambling, a stroll with the possibility of a pub at the end. This is a determined decision to see something, to reach the destination.
           
A long time ago, some wise men made a journey, beginning, unlike Hannah and I, in the East. They were travelling to a destination, although they weren’t certain where that destination was. They did, however, know what they were looking for; a baby; a king.
            We don’t know how long their journey took, whether they had bad weather, tough hills, heavy bags or waterproof shoes, but I’m sure that it wasn’t easy. Undoubtedly they’d have met people along the way and I like to think that they gave them names, like Hannah and I did, and I like to think that they passed through some ‘nice little places’. All that would have counted for nothing, however, when they arrived in Bethlehem, led there by a star (something I’m glad we didn’t have to rely on). They found the baby and delivered gifts, which they had brought along. Not pebbles or simple keepsakes, not last minute buys, like when you’ve forgotten to get something for your mum, but meaningful presents that hinted at the life the baby would have.
            Gold, for a King; Frankincense, for a Priest; Myrrh, for a body to be buried. The wise men probably had little idea what their gifts really meant, but they were perfect.
            What is the perfect gift now? And I don’t mean as a stocking filler. What can we give to Jesus, the King, the Priest, the Saviour who died, and defeated death. The only thing he wants, is ourselves.
 

Have a very Happy Christmas!