That s what Christmas is, a welcome. It s hard. It doesn t come naturally. If we go by the story of the kings, it means seeking out the weakest and most vulnerable. It means letting go of our expectations and prejudices about where the Christ will be found.
Nothing is quite as it seems.
The holy child is difficult to recognize. And it means, if we take the kings seriously, patience, silence, waiting. A long journey in which we will be changed, in which at last we will learn to see clearly. This knowledge will snap away too quickly, of course but just for one light-filled moment in the stable, we will understand ourselves to be both welcomed and the welcomers. We will know how to greet the Christ.