This Christmas season several things have slammed to the front of my mind. I'm convinced that being a mother tends to allow that to happen more easily. We're so entangled with the humdrum of daily life that something emotionally exceptional becomes an uncontrollable tidal wave. I'm grateful for those emotions, they keep me from too quickly passing by things that should be pondered.
The first thing that became a new reality to me this Christmas is the absolute humility of our Lord. One of my favorite verses about Christ's nature is Colossians 2:9, "For in him [Christ] the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily." Yah, that's right... the FULLNESS of deity. This, coupled with Philippians 2:6-7 gives us a clear picture of his purpose on Earth, "who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but EMPTIED himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." Let's take this all in now... Jesus, who contains all the fullness of deity, humbled himself to be born in the likeness of men.
This is where my motherly instincts kicked in. See, I know all of that. And yes, it's amazing, but it's something we talk about all the time. While Kaesyn and I read a book about the three wise men, she made a very obvious statement. There was a painting of Mary with Jesus in the "stable" with the three wise men bowing and giving their gifts. She said this, "Mommy, why did they make it all look so fancy?" I'm sure it was nothing deeper than that for her, but for me it was a smack between the eyes. Why do we make it so fancy? As a mother, I'm sure Mary would have had the same anxieties I did... Is he hungry? Is he warm enough? Should I be worried about...? There are a million things that go through your head the first night, right?! Along with all my anxieties, she was probably looking around for which blanket had the least amount of perspiration on it from their journey so she could swaddle him. She probably got frustrated a the dang donkey that woke him for the 14th time that night... why couldn't there just have been a normal room for them?! That's humility... Christ started there... with nothing... not even basic shelter for his birth. Can we conceive this? And if that's what our Lord did, does this have some further meaning for our calling as Christians?
While I'm thinking about Mary, let me share the other thing that has been at the forefront of my mind this season. At the beginning of December I had one day that was unusually packed with errands. I usually try to keep them to a minimum when the girls aren't in school because they just get cranky after too long with no play break. We went to Walmart, the post office, and several other places ending at Payless Shoes where I needed to try on shoes for a work party for Wade. I could tell as I unloaded them from the car, that I was probably expecting a little too much of this day. They were done. To top it off, from the Payless parking lot, you can clearly see the play place at McDonalds... their promised land. Into the store we went; Jett in the stroller and the girls holding each side. I had to continually remind them to keep hands on the stroller and kept asking Jett to stay in his seat and not try to break the buckle to get out. After a few different tries and letting the girls make a choice for me, we headed to the check out. As I rounded the corner a woman in her fifties was standing there grinning ear to ear. Her words to me were this, "You're doing great mom and your children are just little angels." I felt like I looked like one of those comics where the mom's hair is frazzled and there's a trail of mis-placed items following. Tears came to my eyes... how could she see that through the tail end of our morning errands? I couldn't wait to tell Wade how she had made my day and I will probably remember that moment forever.
This brings me to a point that always gets pounded during Christmas preaching... "Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart" Luke 2:19. Of course she did!! She was his mom!!! I think at some point we've focused on Mary's surrogate status and lost sight of the fact that she was for all intents and purposes his mommy. She would nurse him, feed him and get covered in it, potty train him (and hopefully not get covered in it), and watch him grow. Think about it... when someone comments on your children don't you treasure it? Doesn't your heart swell with pride thinking, "Yep, that's my boy!" And mom's haven't you mentioned to your spouse or friends, "I have the best kids." Think about it... Mary actually did have the best kid. What I'm getting at is this... I can identify with Mary. She was a mom. She was human. God has filled His Word with humanity so we don't miss the point that He came for messed up individuals that can't keep it all together for long. It's all about Him. It's all about His ability to cover, not temporarily, but forever.
My heart this season has been filled anew with wonder over the story of the coming of our Savior. The heartbeat of Heaven is still calling, "Jesus Saves!" His humility should lead us daily to humble ourselves. Philippians 2:3, "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourself." Where are you at on this? I'm preaching to the choir for sure. How do we, in America especially, live lives that consider others more significant than ourselves... and I'm not just talking about those we know and love, but strangers too. Let's leave this season with a fresh view of Christ's humanity and humility. And knowing anew that we too can identify with the characters of the Christmas story. He is still writing the story of humanity today... what part will we play?
