Good morning…
“Merry Christmas, my friend,” I would personally text you if I knew each of your phone numbers.
The Christ child is born, just like the promises of old have always predicted. This ruddy newborn’s first visitors were the lowly, dirty shepherds. So they came as fast as they could and they found Mary and Joseph—and the baby lying in the manger. And when they had seen this sight, they told everybody what had been said to them about the little child. And those who heard them were amazed at what the shepherds said. But Mary treasured all these things and turned them over in her mind. The shepherds went back to work, glorifying and praising God for everything that they had heard and seen, which had happened just as they had been told (Luke 2:16-20, PHILLIPS).
I am drawn to the quieting energy of Mary. The shepherds came fast, told everybody, went back to work, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen. But Mary’s response to this miracle was calm and contemplative. Mary tenderly treasured everything. She turned memories of the last nine months over and over in her mind. She privately pondered the meaning of God’s eternal power wrapped in human skin right before her very eyes.
This morning, I feel a sense of oneness with Mary, stretched wide, worn thin, having pushed through some pain to get this precious moment in time. Might we take some quiet moments today to treasure the memories of the last nine months, turning them over and over in our mind, pondering the meaning of God’s eternal power wrapped in human skin, born so that we might live abundantly forever?
When he grew up into a young man, Jesus was able to make more sense of “all these things” Mary was pondering. Jesus said, “I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow!” (John 10:10b, TPT).
How might the promise of the living Christ overflow in us today and each day over these next coming nine months?
…Sue…
