Good morning all-
I hope this day finds you all well. I'm going to begin my journey into the Christmas season. Basically, the birth of our Lord. It's a reminder to us all that He came and He will come again. His birth was prophesied in the old testament and then it's recanted in the new.
Before I begin, I would like to give you an analogy, one that came to me as I was watching my son play basketball yesterday. He has been playing wonderfully, scoring, rebounding and defending. But yesterday something happened, his shots quit going in, he let his man get beyond him and you could tell his spirit dipped far into the ocean. As a spectator you just want to go out onto the court, hug him and say tomorrow will be okay. That's what we do as mothers, we nurture and protect but there's no protecting a 16 year old in a High School basketball game, just like there is no protecting children in war. We must watch, pray and give them the tools to overcome their obstacles.
Mary was a young woman when the angel came to her and spoke that she would carry the child of God. She was unmarried in a time when they stoned women for being out of wedlock and yet, that was the time God chose to bring His Son into the world. He didn't fast forward to today where getting pregnant isn't looked down upon, He chose that moment. I wonder what Mary's mom thought? Did she want to protect her? Did she understand what it meant? I doubt that anyone except Joseph really understood the full impact of what it meant; God had come to Him in dreams to reveal His purpose and He knew to take care of Mary and God's child.
And as the birth came near, the turmoil became greater. The King feared a more powerful person than himself and ordered all babies to be killed. Can you imagine Mary's fear? What would you have done? I think any mother that loves their child would protect them with their lives but sometimes we can't protect them, only our Father can. Because in the end whether it's Hunter, Mary or Jesus, we all belong to God, we are His!
Matthew 1:18-25 NIV84:
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-which means, "God with us." When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
The conception and the dream were the beginning of the story we now know as the Christmas story. We will spend time looking into the Scripture to unravel the beauty of what God the Father did for us. This story is essential to our Christian walk. It holds the key to our beliefs of a Savior. Mary was chosen and Joseph did as God commanded him to do. Jesus was born and our Savior became man. He came in time of turmoil and delivered His people. He was and is Immanuel! Although Mary escaped divorce, ruin, and stoning, the journey would continue. Joseph would have to protect Mary and Jesus from the beginning. We will look more into this tomorrow but for today, I pray that the Lord we serve is with you and that you are blessed to know Him!
My prayer today:
O, Lord, I come before You in awe. As I read the beginning of Your life it has more power today than ever. You came into this world during turbulent times, You were born of a virgin and You were blessed by the Father. Your life was not Your own from the beginning. Your mother had to carry You knowing that she could die and yet, even though she was young, she carried You and stood by You to the very end. I think sometimes we forget that the young can do powerful things. They are full of confidence and courage. I'm praying for all the teenagers and young children throughout the earth, please put Your hand on them and guide them through this evil world. They are Yours and we as women want to lift them up to You. We can't save them but You can. I come before You asking Your Holy Spirit to come upon us as in the day of Joseph. Bring forth dreams and visions to guide Your people. Give us the strength to teach and believe. My prayer today is that every child and every adult that look upon this story will see You. They will believe the words, not interpret them but believe that what is written is right. I know Father that they are and I have seen first hand how You love us. You pick us up when we are weak and You save us from ourselves. Please forgive our sins for they are many and bring us closer to You. We desire a relationship and the knowledge of You. Your birth was only one vital event in History, there is so much more to come. Thank You for showing us Your story and for capturing it for the entire world to see. Reveal to those that don't know You this season and bring them forth to join Your great army. Holy Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is to come! In Jesus name, AMEN
Until tomorrow...
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