Epiphany
At my church there is a preschool. In the hallway next to my office there is a water fountain. A low-to-the-ground, make-the-adults-bend-way-down, kind of water fountain. Since it is designed for the children it is the perfect height.
Every year, at some point in the fall, the water fountain becomes an object of fascination. One child will press the button in and out, watching the water appear and disappear, appear and disappear. When the water appears, another child drops down to look into the empty space underneath, searching for the water’s source. They will ask each other “where is the water coming from?” or “how does it work?” or “is it magic?”
It is such a joy to be drawn into their curiosity and exploration. I revel in watching them discover the magic of an everyday boring contraption. Children are so eager to explore - EVERYTHING!
One day in our weekly chapel service I asked them if they wanted to go on a field trip in the church. You have never seen such excitement! My church is small, my preaching friend. Our field trip consisted of taking a few steps down the aisle to the baptistry to explore the font. Do you think they were excited? LIKE YOU WOULDN’T BELIEVE!
All caps barely captures it.
Where does it come from and where does it go? That eagerness to discover, to explore every moment, to expect unexpected possibilities. What happens to our incessant curiosity as we get older?
Surely, the magi never lost it. I’m not an astrologer myself, but whenever I gaze up at the stars, I feel awe and wonder. Perhaps their vocation is a help with that. Their curiosity led them to see that star. Curiosity is a one way we explore the mystery Paul is describing. God’s wisdom in its rich variety of people and places.
Curiosity does not always lead to joy immediately, but, eventually it will. It is how we discover who we are, what we want to do, what we’re surprised we can do. It is how we meet new people. It is why curiosity can be courageous. Like the magi we will be led into new territory. And when we get there, when we discover the place our joy resides, gratitude always follows and maybe even reverence. Curious people know themselves and trust their intuition. Like the magi, curious folk know when it is time to change course and go down a different road.
What is the opposite of curiosity? Herod. His mindset is finite and he thinks he knows all the outcomes. His judgements are predetermined and set. For Herod a new thing isn’t something to be discovered it is something to be feared. Because you can’t be curious and defensive at the same time. To be curious is to be vulnerable.
The vulnerability that makes a way for something new to be born – an idea, an insight, an epiphany.
We can choose curiosity when we feel our inner-Herod taking over. When we start to get defensive or in ego-protective mode. Curiosity is what allows us to have conversations with people who do not share our beliefs or ideas about the way the world should work. Curiosity is what allows us to listen to perspectives different than our own.
You know the line from that hymn, “ponder anew what the Almighty can do”? To choose curiosity is to choose that. To make space in our head and heart for God’s possibilities, God’s invitations, God’s initiative in its rich wisdom and variety. It is to trust the mystery of faith Paul so eloquently describes.
Perhaps that is a good resolution for a new year and new decade, to choose curiosity. To ask more questions and listen with more eager expectation. To take on those childlike qualities of greeting the events of each day with a sense of discovery. That trust there is somewhere we will be led, someone we will be led to, every day where our joy will be found.
