The Gospel writer describes the worship experience of the Magi as: “They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary, His mother” (Mt. 2:10).
These pagans had just completed a strenuous and long journey. They had experienced the cold reception of King Herod and his troubled compatriots: “When the king heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” The Magi also had lost sight of the star that guided them momentarily. Still, they worshipped the infant Jesus with overwhelming joy.
What was their secret to this joy in worship? Well, they did not just worship God. They also paid attention to God and followed His inspirations faithfully.
The Magi’s joyful worship shows us five ways in which we can find joy in our worship, too.
1. God inspired them through the star.
The Magi noticed a unique star among the many hosts. They grasped the meaning of this star as belonging to the “newborn king of the Jews” (Mt. 2:2). This is possible because creation reveals God’s wisdom to us, as St. Paul attested, “Ever since the creation of the world, His (God’s) invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what He has made” (Rom. 1:20).
God also inspires us through creation and events in our lives. Sadly, many of us only focus on having good experiences in life and avoiding the bad ones. We hardly stop to ask what these events really mean for us. What is God seeking to reveal to us through our experiences? Unless we allow Him to inspire us in our daily lives, we will struggle to find joy in worship.
We are so different from the Blessed Virgin Mary. In all the events of her life, she “kept all these things pondering them in her heart” because she wanted to respond to divine inspiration and find the divine purpose in everything that she experienced (Lk. 2:19). We will find joy in worship when we learn from her how to connect with the divine message in all our experiences.
2. God led them through the guidance of the star.
The Magi were ready and willing to be led by God. They risked everything to follow the star wherever it led them. They were ready to sacrifice all for the sake of this adventure under the guidance of a mysterious star.
We also find joy in worship when we allow God to take control and lead us in all aspects of our lives. We allow God to determine how we relate with others, make and spend our money, time, and talents, make personal decisions, pray, serve, etc. We give God complete control and dominion over our lives and seek to please Him in all things. We can never find joy in worship when we think that we are the masters of anything in our lives, and we don’t need God’s guidance.
3. The Magi spoke about their mission.
The Magi did not keep their search a secret; they were bold in speaking of their intention to all the troubled people of Jerusalem. “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw His star at its rising and have come to do Him homage” (Mt. 2:2). They gave witness to the newborn king both by their words and by their own search for Him.
Do we also give faithful witness to Jesus, whom we worship? Do we invite others to join us in our search for Jesus by our words and examples? Do our examples spur others to worship God alone, or do we scandalize them and drive them away from God? We cannot find joy in worship when we are not giving faithful witness to the God whom we worship.
4. God inspired them to the very end.
The Magi persevered in their journey to the very end, even when the star disappeared for a moment. They held onto the divine inspiration even when they lost visibility of their guiding sign. They never gave up in their journey and in their intention to worship the infant king. They came to worship, and nothing prevented them from it.
Do we also persevere in worshipping God when we do not sense visible signs of His presence in our lives? Do we follow God’s inspirations to us when they do not seem to yield any visible fruit, despite our repeated efforts? Do we persevere in prayer, repentance, service, and fidelity to God’s commandments and our vocations when we cannot see signs of God’s presence and action?
Do we also persevere in our intention to worship God? Do we worship God only to get something from Him? Do we want to worship God and be entertained at the same time, and therefore quit when we are not feeling entertained or rewarded for our worship?
Only those who persevere can find the joy of worship.
5. They brought their best and most appropriate gifts.
The Magi did not come to worship empty-handed, but they brought gifts that were truly befitting to the person of Jesus and His mission on this earth. Their gold showed the kingship of Jesus, their frankincense showed the holiness of Jesus and His priesthood, and their myrrh showed that this is the king who would die for His people. Their gifts were truly divinely inspired.
Do we come to worship empty-handed, or do we allow God to inspire us on what to bring to worship? Do we bring all the love in our hearts to worship? Do we bring our intentions for ourselves, our loved ones, our Church, our world, and all those in need? Do we bring our prayers for our loved ones who have passed away? Do we bring our sincere thanks for all God’s blessings to us? Do we bring our sins, hurts, struggles, temptations, etc.? Do we bring ourselves as an offering to God in worship? We cannot just keep showing up empty-handed and expect to find joy in worship.
As Catholics, we have the amazing privilege of being present at the highest form of worship at every Holy Mass. The Holy Mass is the very prayer of Jesus, His complete self-offering to His Father for our salvation, and a foretaste of the joy of heaven. Shouldn’t we be filled with joyful hope at each Mass? Is it not a scandal when the world sees us without hope and joy as we attend many Masses?
Some people would even say that they find Holy Mass boring. The homilies might be boring and the music horrendous. But if we believe what is happening at each Mass, pay attention to God in our prayer and daily lives, and strive to follow His inspirations more faithfully, we will draw nearer to God and find worship to be the truly joyful experience it is meant to be. The Holy Mass cannot be boring. Maybe we find the Holy Mass and Eucharistic adoration boring because our own Christian lives are boring.
To find joy in worshipping the Eucharist, let us ask ourselves these questions and answer them honestly: Who am I paying attention to in my daily life and choices? Who is inspiring me in all that I do? If our honest answer is God, then we will surely find joy in worshipping Him.
Glory to Jesus!!! Honor to Mary!!!
Photo by NASA Hubble Space Telescope on Unsplash
