In March of 2022, the Hubble telescope discovered the farthest known star from Earth. It’s named Earendel (meaning “morning star”) and is 12.9 billion light years away. Twelve point nine BILLION light years. Which means that the light we can see through the telescope right now began heading this way billions of years ago. I can’t quite get my brain around it.

Even the closest star to our sun, Proxima Centauri, is 4.25 light years away. So the light we see from that star is light that existed before the COVID pandemic.

Somehow this is what I’ve been thinking about as we approach Epiphany: how the starlight we see today started it’s journey to us years ago; how so many of the suns that we see as stars in the night sky died a fiery death hundreds, thousands, even billions of years ago—so that what seems so real and present to our eyes doesn’t actually exist anymore. Except it does. Because there it is. Isn’t it?

I’ve been wondering how far the light traveled to get to the magi and guide them to Bethlehem. And I’ve been wondering how long ago the light I’m looking for was created, how long its journey to me might be, and whether I’ll recognize the miracle of it when I see it shining against the magnificent darkness of the night sky.

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If you would like a star word to guide your spiritual journey in 2024, comment below or contact me and I will be happy to send you one.

If you’re looking for worship resources for Epiphany, scroll down to the “Year (Liturgical and Otherwise) section of my worship resource index page.

And if you’d like to support my writing and receive spiritual journal pages each month, check out my Patreon page.

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Happy new year, dear ones. I will leave you with this new year’s prayer I wrote several years ago:

God of new life,
God of life made new,

We begin this new year as we ended the last–
embraced by your spirit of love
your presence of peace
your gentle power.

We leave behind the old year in the knowledge that
Whatever we have done in the service of selfish desire;
Whenever we have participated in injustice;
However we have strayed from Jesus’ way;
You have forgiven us.

Lead us now into the abundant life of the new year.
Give us eyes to glimpse your presence in each moment.
Give us ears to hear the quiet promptings of your Spirit.
Give us hearts open to the joy and the pain of the lives that surround ours.

We set our feet
once again
on the way walked by Jesus.

These steps of peace may be difficult in a terrain that slopes toward violence.
These steps of justice may prove tiring as we walk against the  winds of injustice.
These steps of love may be painful with so much hatred to step over and bump up against.

Give us the wisdom
Give us the strength
to take these steps anyway.

Each day a new step.
Each step a faithful movement toward your kingdom.
Each step taken only by your grace
only in your power
our Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer.

Amen.