After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.  Matthew 1:9-12

            This star could be whatever God wanted it be.  It could have been a planet billions of miles away which God turned up the brightness on.  It could have been an alignment of planets creating an event which from our perspective looked brighter in the sky.  It could have been an angel shining like a hanging lamp over Bethlehem. 

            The wise men followed it and it seemed to rise and go ahead of them, kind of like it had a mind of its own.  God was making sure it guided the wise men where he needed them to be.  Whether God moved the star a billion miles away or re-aligned the planets to shine brighter or an angel moved in the upper atmosphere—God can do whatever he wants.