Caravaners to Bring Special Treasures

Shutran traveled from his homeland in the Hadhramaut to the Treasury House in Ein Gedi to learn about balsam and how to extract the precious liquid from all the resins brought there by caravan. Photo © YL Wisdom

We continue with a series of excerpts from D. Gary Young’s novel The One Gift, the action-filled story of a Bedouin caravan commander named Shutran. We hear the Christmas story told by Shutran’s descendant, also named Shutran, as he meets three caravan commanders who will carry royal gifts to a Special Child.

~~~~~~~~

Ein Gedi had become a welcome change, working in the distillery and learning the extraction process of the resin. The constant breathing of the aromas was so uplifting and made the challenges of the days easier to overcome. Over the years many caravaners have brought me resin to distill. There was such a fascination for the oils from which exotic creams, lotions, and perfumes were made and highly sought after, which meant that I needed to distill more resin.

Those early years shaped my destiny and brought me from my homeland with my father’s caravan to the Treasury House in Ein Gedi to learn about balsam and how to extract the liquid from all the resins. I knew the oils were special, especially with the spiritual feeling that was as empowering as the miraculous healings I saw. It was amazing how the demand for frankincense had grown throughout the world.

I thought about the prophets of old as they spoke of a new King soon to be born—a Messiah. The words of Micah resounded in my head, “. . . among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel. . . .”

The Prophet Isaiah said this newborn King would be like none before, for he would bear our griefs and carry our sorrows. He would be wounded for our transgressions, and we would be healed.

Grandfather said the prophets foretold that this time was coming and that we would recognize it by the signs in the heavens. I wondered, “Is this how the wise men will know when to come? Surely they will stop here to rest before their final journey. I know many will want to take gifts, just as I do.”

To be continued.

The One Gift novel is available at Life Science Publishing by calling 800-336-6308 or at www.lifesciencepublishers.com.Copyright © 2010 YL Wisdom.

Feel free to share! If you copy and paste whole posts to your member blog, please attribute and link back to the original post on dgaryyoung.com.