Field and Fountain, Moor and Mountain

By Cynthia Ruchti

Do you suppose the wise men made their entire journey without doubt?

When they traveled from the East, a trip that according to tradition may have taken years, what are the odds that none of them ever complained? Or wondered about the wisdom of their decision to follow a star?

Can you hear the discussion around the fire after an especially trying leg of the journey?

“Hey, toss me another strip of camel jerky.” “We’re all out.”“What do you mean, we’re out?”“You’re a wise man. What do you suppose it means? Out, as in no more. Gone.”

“That’s it. I’m through. Turn this caravan around. I’m going home.”“But the star.”“What about it?”“It’s still moving.”“Must be a helicopter.”“A what?”“Or weather satellite.”

“What strange words speaketh thou?”“Me? I’m speaking strangely? Listen to yourself!”

At how many points in their long and likely arduous travels were the wise men challenged by self-doubt? Were they really called of God? Was it their own foolish notion to follow a fraction of a constellation? Or were they following a divine Voice that spoke star language?

How much richer the Christmas story rings because at every discouraging moment of their journey, they made the decision to keep pressing on!

Will you, too?

PRAYER: Father God, I too often wonder if the path I’m on was Your idea or my own. Show me clearly and I’ll follow You anywhere.

“My soul followeth hard after Thee”, Psalm 63:8 KJV.

Today’s devotional is by Cynthia Ruchti, writer and producer of the radio ministry THE HEARTBEAT OF THE HOME and current president of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW). Cynthia’s debut novel—They Almost Always Come Home—releases from Abingdon press May 1, 2010. Cynthia writes stories of hope-that-glows-in-the-dark. www.cynthiaruchti.com.