It’s time for an epiphany

Deborah Squires

Have any Christmas gifts that have already lost their luster?  
Have any New Year’s resolutions you’ve already reconsidered or abandoned outright?

It’s time for an epiphany.

The word epiphany means a revelation or a realization – an “ah-hah!” moment. A moment of insight. In regard to New Year’s resolutions, it may be the reluctant realization that we are not suddenly going to get up at 5 a.m. every morning and head to the gym. In movies and literature, an epiphany often marks a turning point in the plot. The protagonist sees what they had not seen before, and it changes things: Oh! I really do love you. Or, oh. I don’t love you anymore.

The classic meme for an epiphany is a person with a bright, shining light bulb over their head. Or a bright, shining star in a night sky.

The word itself comes from the Greek epiphaneia and means to appear or become manifest. Something that was hidden or abstract is now embodied and real. It is incarnate.

For Christians, the month-long season of Epiphany begins on January 6. It celebrates the revelation of Jesus to the world through two momentous events: the visit of the magi to the newborn child and Jesus’ baptism as a grown man. We read these stories back-to-back, moving straight from singing “What Child is This?” to hearing God answer, “This is my Son, my Beloved, in whom I take delight.” (Matthew 3:17)

The purpose is for us to see what the wisemen and those watching on the banks of the River Jordan saw: that in Jesus, God is in the world in small and large ways. This changes everything. The question is, will we have the same epiphany, the same “ah-hah!” ?

One of my favorite poems by Mary Oliver is "Instructions for Living a Life":

Pay attention! 
Be astonished.
 Tell about it.

Pithy and profound, the poem urges us to have an epiphany. To look and see with new eyes, like a curious child, and to let it change us.

Jesus issues a similar invitation to curious seekers, telling them to “come and see” who he is. (John 1:39). Come and see is a powerful invitation to those who are spiritually hungry. Come and see is an invitation that Jesus extends to all of us.

Explore his teachings. Be in a relationship with him. See what he does, then “go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:37). Show compassion. Expand your vision of who your neighbor is. See God in your life and in the world in small and large and surprising ways. Have an epiphany and let the truth of it change you.