TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS--DAY FIVE: MARY

MARY: TENDER AND TOUGH

READ: Luke 1:26-38, 46-55, 2:5-7, 21-24, 33-35, 41-51, John 19:25-27 (Click here to read selections from the NIV)

One sunny March morning, Abdel-Quader, a government employee in southern Iraq, discovered that his 17 year old daughter Rand had been seen in public, chatting with a British soldier.  Enraged, he waited for her to come home, at which time he stomped on, suffocated and then stabbed the young girl to death.  Though he was arrested, he was released two hours later, after having been congratulated by the police for acting to restore his family's honor in the face of the girl's immorality.  The murder was fully sanctioned by Sharia law, although Rand had done nothing more than engage in conversation with the soldier during her breaks at work.

Though there were no such laws in first century Judea, the culture in which the teenage Mary had grown up would have had some similar values.  People, for example, were not viewed as individuals, but rather as members of their group or clan, and therefore, whatever one person did, reflected on all of them.  Nazareth was a small, conservative village with only about 400 inhabitants, which meant that everyone would most likely have been drawn into her pregnancy in some way.  The fact that Mary claimed it was an act of God surely only made matters worse.



Yet, when the angel appeared announcing God's call to Mary, her response was nothing short of miraculous.  Though deeply troubled at first, she answered with humble acquiescence and then broke out with the Magnificat, one of the most glorious psalms of worship ever written.  Truly this was a girl with a tender heart toward the God of her childhood.

You have to think, though, that as she stood before her father sharing her news, that a measure of fear robbed her of the joy she'd experienced earlier.  Even Joseph's plan to marry her could not have assuaged the rage and shame and sadness the teenager's dad must have felt, and probably expressed.  Mary's baptism by fire had begun.  As if months of rejection and scorn weren't enough, the very pregnant girl had to travel 80 miles in six days through the desert on a donkey, only to encounter a maelstrom of frustrated pilgrims fighting for lodging, and finally give birth in a grotto that sheltered sheep, with no sister or aunt or mother or midwife to hold her hand.  Mary was mired in a crucible of God's making, toughening her up for even greater heartache to come.

By the time she'd raised Jesus, Mary had become a strong, confident, even headstrong woman.  At the wedding in Cana, she quickly dismissed her son's objection to doing miracles before his time, telling the servants to follow his orders.  She traveled with him off and on after that, until the day Jesus discharged her by declaring that it was the ones who did His Father's will, who were now his mother and brothers and sisters.

 

 That is the last we hear of Mary until those hours when Jesus hung in a bloodied heap from the cross of Calvary.  While most of His disciples fled in fear, the woman whose womb had carried Him looked bravely on, as her first-born took his final breaths.  What memories  flashed across her mind in those painful hours?  Did the roar of the mocking crowd bring back the ridicule she had faced so long ago?  When the soldiers bartered for his ragged robe, did she see herself in that stable, swaddling her infant against the chill of night?  When water and blood shot from the stab wound in her Son's side, did she hear a distant echo of Simeon in the temple, warning her of a sword that would pierce her soul?  In that moment, did she weep and wail and wonder how in the world she would ever recover?

And yet, recover, she did, at least in part, for the book of Acts tells us that Mary was there after Christ's ascension, praying with Peter and James and John and all the others as they waited for power from on high in the upper room.  Only eternity will reveal the role she played in those days of the early church and the spread of the gospel throughout the land, and beyond.

So, as Christmas comes, let us consider this woman who pondered things in her heart, and loved the glory of Almighty God.  Let us remember the way her trials shaped her, and the strength she gleaned from the sacrifices she made.  And as we see her pressing on, pushing through, and persevering in the face of a kind of pain we cannot even begin to comprehend, let us give thanks; for we all are, to this day, in that woman's debt.

REFLECT

Pain is inevitable for those who would follow Christ, but as we see in Mary's life, there is always purpose in it.  As you think of her story, ask God to show you how He has used your own struggles to make you into his chosen vessel.  Offer Him your heart and life to do with as He wills, once again.  Speak the simple words that Mary prayed aloud: Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; Let it be to me according to Your word."

RESPOND

Worship the Lord by personalizing the Magnificat, the prayer of Mary, upon learning of God's call:

Psalm 104:1-2, 31-34

"My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our fathers."


A CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

Write Mary's words of submission on a card and carry it with you throughout the day, offering it up as often as possible, as your own prayer.  Share it with someone else: Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; Let it be to me according to Your word.

TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS--DAY FOUR: JOSEPH

JOSEPH: A QUIET OBEDIENCE
READ: Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:3-5, Matthew 13:54-55, Luke 4:22 (Click here to read selections from the NIV)

If there is one character in the Christmas story that seems to get short shrift, it would have to be Joseph.  Maybe it's because he wasn't Jesus biological father, or perhaps it's that so little is said about him after Christ's birth.  Whatever the reason, people don't talk about Joseph much, to this day.

But when you think about it, being the foster father of the Messiah had to have turned that carpenter's life upside down, in ways we probably fail to fully appreciate.  It would be hard, for example, to measure the price he paid in loss of reputation and privacy and respect, when he married the young pregnant woman instead of finding a nice way to her out of his life.  Beyond that, consider the inner turmoil that must have plagued him as he faithfully raised the boy--wrestled with him and taught him and disciplined him and tucked him in at night--knowing all along that it wasn't really his son at all.  Surely Joseph's heart was pierced the time he searched frantically all over the temple for Jesus during their annual visit, only to have the twelve year old ask, "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"

Though we can surmise about these things, the reality is that Scripture gives us little to remember Joseph by.  After the temple visit, he fades from view and we have no record of how or when he died.  In all of the Gospel narratives, there is nothing written about what he felt, or the things he might have said when the angel woke him, or he took Mary as his own, or when the Baby Jesus was born.  It almost feels as if he was a strangely silent bystander over the course of the entire ordeal.  Apparently, Joseph of Nazareth had nothing to say at all.

Or did he?

Actually, even a cursory glance at Jesus' early years suggests that Joseph left us a profound legacy--not in words, but through his acts of quiet obedience.  When Gabriel told him to wed his pregnant fiance, he did so without argument.  When an angel warned him to leave Bethlehem, he took Mary and baby Jesus and traveled to a hostile land where they would have no family, no friends and no source of income.  When Herod died and God told him to take his family back to Israel, Joseph packed up and went, once again.  And when he got there, only to be warned not to settle in Judea, which was most likely his original plan, he journeyed instead to Galilee to set up housekeeping, an act that opened the door for the fulfillment of the prophecy that the Savior would be a Nazarene.

What is the legacy we glean from these few scattered verses about the legal guardian of our Lord?  Whatever else Joseph might have been, he was a man who feared God above all, and as a result, readily relinquished his rights to comfort or a career or status or security, or even personal identity.  Though every decision to do what God asked was a costly one, we find in the actions of Joseph of Nazareth no sense of resistance.

So, as we approach Christmas, let us look a little more intently at this man whose quiet obedience tells a story all its own.  May his life cause us to consider what kind of message the actions in our personal narratives send to those who may be watching on any given day.  And as we remember this one who stood so humbly at the edges of the Christmas chronicle, may we offer our hearts afresh to the God he served with such unfettered abandonment.

REFLECT

In what ways to you think the assumptions of our culture concerning things like self-esteem, identity, financial security, and personal fulfillment have influenced your spiritual journey?  Spend some time prayerfully meditating on Joseph's quiet obedience in light of your own life.  Is there anything God has asked you to leave behind?  What has been your response?  Is there any area you have marked off as 'untouchable' to God--perhaps not in a conscious, deliberate deicsion, but through a resistance to listen to His still, small voice?  Offer your heart to Him today, asking God to give you the kind of tenderness toward Him that we see in the heart of Joseph.

RESPOND

While our tendency is to focus on the person, when we observe such radical obedience, Joseph's actions reveal something far more important--the greatness of the God he served.  Only the Almighty, full of grace and glory, could inspire such amazing submission.  Worship Him this morning as you make the following verses your own.

Psalm 104:1-2, 31-34    

Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak,
Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain.
Let the glory of the LORD endure forever;
Let the LORD be glad in His works;
He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
Let my meditation be pleasing to Him;
As for me, I shall be glad in the LORD.

 A CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

Look for opportunities to respond with quiet obedience to the Lord as you go throughout this day.

TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS--DAY TWO

JOHN THE BAPTIST: COURIER OF JOY

READ: Luke 1:13-16, 39-43, 57, 80, John 3:25-30 (Click here to read selections from the NIV)

In 1623 a woman in France gave birth to one of the greatest mathematical minds in history.  From early on he demonstrated amazing genius, discovering at the age of twelve that the sum of the angles of a triangle is equal to two right angles--a fact now taught in every basic geometry class.  As an adult, Blaise Paschal devoted himself to mathematical experiments and traveled about lecturing on his findings.  Then one night something happened that changed everything.

He was driving a coach home when the lead horses took fright and fled wildly across a bridge railing into the dark waters below.  Had the reins not snapped, Paschal would have plunged to his death, a reality that deeply affected him.  Later that night as he pondered his near-death experience, the presence of God descended in a dramatic way.  He wrote of it on a piece of parchment and secured it in an amulet that  he kept next to his heart. Giving up mathematical pursuits, he went on  to devote himself completely to Christ.  Upon his death they found the amulet around his neck, with the paper he'd written that night.  It contained these words:...O righteous Father, the world hath not know Thee, but I have known Thee.  Joy, joy, joy, tears of joy.

Joy  ought to be the life song of every Christ-follower, for it flows from the heart of God and resonates on page after page of Scripture.  The Christmas story is replete with expressions of gladness and calls to rejoice, and nowhere is this seen more keenly than in Christ's forerunner and cousin, John the Baptist. 

John's  joy as a young man was wrapped up in the wonder of being chosen to announce something as incredible as the coming of the Messiah. Though he  preached a hard message of repentance, there is never the sense that he  viewed his calling as anything but the delight of his soul.  He made this clear to his disciples one day when they were concerned that he was  losing his standing to the  newcomer named Jesus of Nazareth.  Though he'd told them many times that he was only there to prepare the way, they lost sight of that when the crowds thinned around them, flocking instead to the One whom John declared was the Lamb of god who takes away the sins of the world. 

As  they shared their concerns, John explained that he was like a best man in a wedding, waiting with everyone else for the bridegroom to arrive.  Once he heard the bridegroom's voice, he knew the wedding was imminent, and joy completely consumed him.  Nothing brought John greater happiness  than to know that he was fading into the background, even as Jesus gained in popularity.  In reality, Jesus' appearance was the beginning of the end for John; a horrifying one that he may very well have suspected was on the horizon even as he spoke of his joy being made full.

So with every Christmas carol we sing in the coming days, let us cling to the truth that we are made for joy, that no matter what our life might hold on any given day, our very birthright as believers is to know gladness of heart.  Think of it.  We too have the privilege of preparing  the way, of listening for the Bridegroom's voice as He comes to us.  And as we live to see Him increase and ourselves decrease, we will, like  John the Baptist, have our joy made full to overflowing.

REFLECT

Though  joy is our birthright as children of God, we often have to enter into a  fight of faith in order to experience it.  Consider your own life today.  Is it permeated with joy in Christ?  Are you motivated by pleasure to do His will?  Do you live to enjoy Jesus more?  In what ways might you need to enter into battle to reclaim your right to joy?

RESPOND 

John the Baptist rejoiced to hear the Bridegroom's voice.  Ask Jesus to  speak to your heart today by giving you a revelation of who he is and His presence with you, as you read the following verses.  Spend some time worshiping by rejoicing in Him. 

1 Chronicles 16:32-34

Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall the trees of hte forest sing for joy
before the Lord, for He comes to judge the earth.
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; 
for His steadfast love endures forever!  

A CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

Make the Christmas carol, Joy to the World your song of the day.  Click here to sing the song and worship with Chris Tomlin.  As you sing it to yourself, think of joy as the greatest gift of all in Christ.   Celebrate!

TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS--DAY ONE: GOD'S EXTRAORDINARY SURPRISES

READ: Luke 1:1-22, 56-66 (Click here to read selections from the NIV)

I love surprises.  To my poor husband's chagrin, I refuse to participate in the shabby tradition of telling him what to get me for Christmas.  I know it's a practical way to exchange gifts, and one that lots of people prefer, but to me, Christmas without surprises is like a cupcake without the frosting.  I still eat it, but feel like I've somehow missed out on the best part.



I know I'm in good company here, because when you read the stories of Christ's birth, it is easy to see that God loves surprises too.  Take the first narrative Luke unfolds for us, where an unknown priest shows up for his annual ministry at the Temple and gets waylaid by an angel as he burns incense on the altar.  When Gabriel announces Zachariah's role in the grand Gospel story, Scripture says he became paralyzed with fear.  Terror soon gave way to cynicism, however, as the angel promised him the surprise of his life--a chance to father a son in his very old age. 

The thing about God's surprises is that so often they come when hope is gone and dreams have died.  Not only had Zechariah given up on having a son, but he was one of millions of Israelites who had heard nothing from God for over 400 years.  Think of it.  For ten generations there had been no angel visitations, no angry prophets, no clouds by day or fires by night, no temples filling with smoke or Mount Sinai's quaking with the glory of the Lord.  It would be safe to say that most of God's children were living with little anticipation of the promised Messiah showing up to free them from the tyranny of Rome.

Another thing about God's surprises is that although they seem to come when time has run out, we discover in retrospect that His plan was perfect to accomplish His goals.  In His sovereign wisdom, the Almighty carefully lines things up, preparing the way for break-through, even though we may be oblivious to His working, and perhaps have even given up.  Yet, we can look back and see the ways in which every detail of how, and when God chose to act, played a critical role.

 In this story, for example, Zachariah had left the hills of Judea to come to the busy metropolis of Jerusalem.  He was not ministering at the temple alone in the early morning or late at night, but at mid-day when the crowds came to offer prayers and hundreds would see him come out and know that something supernatural had occurred.  And though Zachariah came as a priest to perform his temple duties once a year, this was the only time in his life when the lot fell for him to enter into the holy of holies.  What better place to be ambushed by God?

All in all, when you consider what would soon unfold, God had a pretty novel idea to kick the whole thing off.  Not only did an old man get a wish that he'd long ago given up on, but his miracle baby would prepare the way for the fulfillment of the greatest promise ever given, the coming of the Messiah.

So as we enter the final stretch before Christmas, let us ponder deeply the story of a faithful priest and the people of God who endured 400 years of Sovereign silence.  And may we take delight that we have a heavenly Father who, when least expected, loves to come crashing into our world with glorious surprises.  

REFLECT

Although Zachariah was struck mute because of his cynicism and unbelief, God used his failure to draw attention to His own power (see verses 57-66).  Are there areas in your life where you have given up hope of God breaking in?  Does unbelief keep you from an abiding trust in God's Word and His ways?  If so, offer these things to the Lord, asking Him to give you a fresh start.  Affirm that He will use even your unbelief to accomplish His purposes in His time. Write your thoughts to the Lord in a journal.

RESPOND

Zachariah burst out in praise as soon as God loosened his lips.   Read his words below aloud, personalizing them as your own prayer of praise to God.

"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace."

A CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

Plan a way to surprise someone who might least expect it today.  As you experience the joy of doing so, reflect on how God takes pleasure in bestowing surprises upon His children

MINDFULNESS

This year I have been focusing on mindfulness as a way of being in the world. I am trying to learn how to cultivate an awareness that what matters is the moment at hand, whether I'm paying bills or writing a paper or waiting in the line at the grocery store. I want to remember continually that since all of life is spiritual, nothing I do or see or know or hear or experience is outside of the realm of God's touch. Jean-Pierre De Caussade, an 18th century saint challenged us to embrace the holiness--not just of the moment, but in the moment, something he referred to as a sacrament:

Precious moment, how small in the eyes of my head and how great in those of my heart, the means whereby I receive small things from the Father who reigns in heaven! Everything that falls from there is very excellent, everything bears the mark of its maker.

For me, this is a journey fraught with stops and starts, but in the end I'm learning that like every other spiritual discipline, it requires persistent grace, daily intentionality, and patience with myself.

LENT BEGINS TODAY

Today begins a journey for millions of Christ-followers, one which has taken place for over 2000 years now.  I always enter this time of year with a sober anticipation of how God wants to reveal himself within me, and then through me to a broken world.

I am reading a classic called Revelations of Divine Love by a 14th century woman named Julian of Norwich this Lenten season.  In the first chapter she tells of asking God to give her three wounds-the wound of "very contrition," the wound of "kind compassion" and the wound of "steadfast longing toward God."  

As I prepare to ponder the manifold wounds Christ endured through his Passion, I am asking how he might want to wound my own heart, that I might more fully know the fellowship of his sufferings.  As time allows, I will share.  Here is a quote from my reading this morning:

I saw that He is to us everything that is good and comfortable for us: He is our clothing that for love wrappeth us, claspeth us, and all encloseth us for tender love, that He may never leave us; being to us all-thing that is good, as to mine understanding.

Two notes for your own pilgrimage:

• I am sorry to say that I have not received permission from my publisher to distribute the devotionals from Contemplating the Cross online this year.  I am still working on this, and hopefully will be able to do so soon.  Meanwhile, the book is available in hard-copy as well as for Kindle through Amazon.  You can find it by clicking here.  

• For a powerful way to set your heart towards Christ on this first day of Lent, click here  and enjoy about 10 minutes of blessed adoration. 

May you experience all that God has for you on this Lenten journey. 

Twelve Days of Christmas--Day Twelve: Jesus!

JESUS!

READ: Luke 2:1-7, Isaiah 9:6-7, Isaiah 53:3-11, Revelation 4:1-11  (Click here to read selections from the NIV).

Have you ever stopped to consider what really happened when the Almighty entered into the womb of a woman--when the Son of God became the Son of man--flesh and blood, bones and joints, muscle and sinew?  I love the picture Daniel Fuller paints in his book Unity of the Bible, where he describes the incarnation as a winding staircase stretching from the glory of heaven to the world of wretched misery.  While Jesus' descent to earth to redeem humankind began long before the foundation of the world, our first glimpse is in the stable that reeked of animal dung and moldy straw, where a newborn babe lay shivering in the chill of night, vulnerable to some of the worst conditions this globe could offer.

To me, the most stunning thing about Christ's descent from glory was His choice to let go of His role in sharing equality with God.  Though he retained his deity in essence, He chose to give up His rights as God in experience, requiring Him to depend upon His heavenly Father for whatever power or wisdom or guidance He might need.  

What must it have been like for the all-sufficient son of God to know that soon he would be at the mercy of weak and sinful human beings? Can you see Him there, standing on that staircase just before the Spirit placed Him in Mary's womb?  What kinds of thoughts went through His mind?  Surely it must have felt as if He were stepping into a swirling abyss of horror.




From that manger in Bethlehem, Christ's descent from glory soon continued.  His parents became vagabonds, settling as strangers in a foreign land where their livelihood depended upon Egyptians who probably detested them.  Later Mary and Joseph would establish their family in Nazareth, a place of derision even among the Jews for its lack of any distinguishing mark.  As Jesus prepared for public ministry in the wilderness fast, the god of the world He'd come to save taunted Him for his fall from power, daring Him to reclaim his rights as the Almighty.  He refused, and the descent went on. 

For the next three years, the Son of Man sought to do his Father's will while sleeping in fields and hills, looking to benevolent women for financial support, seeking solace through prayer in the wee hours of His dark and lonely nights.  Scorned by heathens, rejected by the religious elite, living under constant threat of death, the drumbeat of descent pounded out its rhythm day after difficult day.

Down and down and down the winding staircase Jesus went, as His closest followers denied and abandoned Him upon His arrest.  Then, mocked, spat upon, slapped, and scourged to a bloody pulp, he was paraded through the streets like a criminal and hung to die while His earthly mother looked on in despair.  And for six hours on Calvary, the Son of Man descended to the  very depths of depravity, as he took on the sins of the world, leading to the most painful predicament of all--a severing of His relationship with His Father.

The Apostle's Creed asserts that Jesus even descended into hell, alluding to a verse in 1 Peter that may indicate that this took place between His death and resurrection.  While theologians disagree on whether this happened or not, it seems to me that Jesus had already experienced the very worst that hell had to offer, when he was plunged into that black agony of separation from the one He'd loved and been loved by for all of eternity past.

This is just a smattering of the descent from glory that Jesus faced when He entered our world as a tiny baby.  We will perhaps only grasp the scope of it when we see Him one day on His throne, radiant in splendor, attended by angels and worshiped by saints from every tribe and tongue.  but there could be no better time to ponder such a thing than on Christmas Day, as we celebrate our Lord's birth.

So as we read the Christmas story and exchange our gifts and share our meals, let us take time to remember what it really cost to redeem fallen humankind.  May we muse on that manger scene through the prism of the panorama in glory, where our King reigns over all, His beauty filling the temple of the heavens and splashing out across our world in whispers of wonder that we are privileged to behold.  And as we do, let us bow and worship in some way befitting to the One who began that descent to secure your salvation and mine, long before this world was formed.  Worthy is the lamb who was slain.

REFLECT

Today is one of celebration, family, sharing and fellowship.  Take some time to give thanks for all of these things as you ponder that staircase.  See Jesus going down it step by step.  Read the following passage slowly and prayerfully, asking the Spirit to give you fresh revelation of what it meant for Jesus to humble Himself and become a man.

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death--even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:6-8)

RESPOND

Now read the rest of the passage, turning it into a prayer of praise and worship for the King of kings and Lord of lords, whose birth we celebrate today.

(Philippians 2:9-11).

A CHRISTMAS ACTIVITY

ENJOY THE DAY!