Today we celebrate The Epiphany, recognizing the manifestation of the Light of the World, whom we know as Christ Jesus, to all “the peoples of the earth.” Some years ago, I read Melannie Svoboda’s Everyday Epiphanies in which she says that we all experience epiphanies, manifestations of the presence of God, in small, subtle ways throughout our lives. We often fail to recognize them, however, because we are unfamiliar with the signature of God, those flags attached to our epiphanies to let us know it is indeed the Holy One who speaks to us and walks with us.

We’re familiar with many personal biblical epiphanies. For example: for the Wise Men in our gospel for today, who were astrologers by profession, God chose a star to lead them on their way to discover and worship the Incarnate One. When Jesus rewarded Simon Peter, the fisherman, for the use of his boat with a super bountiful catch of fish, Peter recognized the hand of God at work in his life. (Lk.5:1-10) For Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration, it was the voice of God in the cloud that signaled the profound reality of their experience. (Mk.9:2-8) Mary Magdalene recognized the risen Christ when she heard him call her by name. (Jn.20:16) The couple in Emmaus recognized the risen Lord in the action of the breaking of the bread. (Lk.24:13-31) Paul, on the road to Damascus, was stunned by the Glory of God so that he could receive the revelation that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. (Acts 9:3-9)

Those intimate epiphanies continue in the here and now. A friend today described her experience of the presence of God as being so palpable it seemed one could reach out and touch it. One friend describes his epiphanies from God seeming to come wrapped up and tied with a ribbon which can only be discerned in the careful, attentive unwrapping. Another friend related how she experienced a nudge to get in touch with a long-lost friend who responded saying how badly she had needed that communication to encourage her through chemo. For me, the signature that God uses seems to be synchronicity—a meaningful coincidence of two unrelated things—something I’m not expecting—something out of the blue—something over which I have no control. God’s signatures are as varied and unique as those of us who are receiving the epiphanies, but whatever they may be, the light dawns in our hearts, and our eyes are opened to see the love of God working in our lives.