Since it is December, I decided to read Luke's narrative of Christ's birth. Yes, there are parts I read in the voice of Linus from A Charlie Brown Christmas. Please don't act like you don't do the same. Yet I digress. This is a part of scripture that is easy to read with familiarity. The challenge when reading verses we have heard so many times is allowing God to show us something new. Amazingly, He always does!
"After seeing them, they reported the message they were told about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them."
Luke 2:17-19
Mary. Oh sweet, young, Mary. What kind of treatment had she endured throughout her pregnancy? Having been a single mom twice over myself, I can somewhat imagine the ridicule she must have faced. I know my own experience and the comments that were made to me and this was in the last 20 years. But 2,000 years ago? And unlike me, Mary did not make the choices herself that lead to her condition. Despite all the things that must have been said to her, she KNEW in her heart the truth of her child. Yes, Joseph was also visited by an angel to confirm the situation, but I wonder if Mary ever wondered if Joseph was just "playing along" to make her feel better. Did she ever question if she imagined the whole thing and maybe one night in a state of forgetfulness her and Joseph did hook up and that was really how she became pregnant. Did she ever question the origins of the promise inside of her? Ahhhh...that word! The Promise!
Are there things God has promised you? Have you clearly heard Him speak and believed His word to be true and while it seems part of it is legitimate, those around you don't believe the origin? Obviously, Mary was pregnant. This was a fact. The matter in question was the origin of what she was carrying. Is what you are carrying from God or from you? When it is from God, the origin will always be confirmed to others through the Holy Spirit, and in time will be revealed. This is why the verse above in bold "spoke" to me this morning. I read it several times. While others were marveling at the birth of Jesus and the revelation given through the angels, Mary was treasuring the moment and meditating on what was happening. When what you have been carrying is birthed, it is OTHERS who will proclaim in confirmation that it is the work of the Lord. You do not have to be the one to shout from the rooftops, "This is God! This is God!" Yes, we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. I am not saying we should not share our story. What God showed me is that in the "afterbirth" of what He has told us He would do, there is a time for OTHERS to marvel in the goodness of God and to share what they have seen.
There is a time for us to remain silent. There is a time to meditate on the reality of others recognizing the promise of God in our lives. For all the time you spent wondering, "Am I crazy to believe this is of God?" there is a time when God will show others THIS IS FROM ME! Treasure this time. Hold on to these times. Because there will be a time again down the road when God will speak again. I wonder if as Mary watched Jesus ridiculed and crucified, it was these memories that she pulled on to get her through. She meditated on these while He was yet a baby, so that as she watched His purpose play out, she could remind herself this was God's will. You, too, will need this as you see what you birthed fulfill its purpose. There will be times of pain as your "baby" matures into what God intended it to be. In these times, recall the days of amazement from others. Know that you DID hear from God and He will never fail to see His purposes fulfilled.
So if God has spoken a promise into you that you have not yet birthed, hold on to that promise. Continue to nurture it just as you would an unborn child. Know that in time, it will come to be seen by others and they will know the goodness of God through that work He has birthed through you!
