Christmas Eve
The night before Jesus was born was probably a very interesting evening. I have been around for 3 babies to be born, but I can't imagine preparing for the procedure in a stable. I would speculate that even Mary, the maid servant of the Lord, was concerned about her bedroom when she began to realize the baby was coming. What would they do with no family to assist? How would they take care of a baby in the same area as the cows and other animals? It is a strange way for the Lord to be born.
Joseph probably felt very badly for his wife. It is hard enough to have a baby in the right environment. How could he keep her comfortable? What could he do to help her through the delivery? It is a wonderful event and terrifying at the same time.
Then, when you add to all of this the fact that this was the Son of God. Both Joseph and Mary had been assured by angels that they were to be the parents of the Messiah. Now, the Messiah was to be born in a strange place. Did they just trust God, or was it hard to understand why God was doing it this way? I believe they did have faith, but they must have had their concerns, too. What would it be like to be the parents of God's Son?
So many of these things were flooding their minds as the labor pains began, and the only thing they could do was trust the Lord to see them through. All they could do was ask Him to show them how to proceed into the future God had laid out for them.
Now, I ask you a question. Are our lives all that much different from Mary and Joseph's lives on the first Christmas Eve? I don't think so. Is there any one out there who is living in the ideal situation in life, and you have everything you need? Is there anyone who understands everything about what God is doing in your life? Finally, is there anyone who knows what will come tomorrow? Really, none of us knows these things, and all any of us can do is trust the Lord to provide for us and to prepare us to follow Him each day, one day at a time.
I pray this Christmas Eve that each of us will give our total attention to the greatest event in human history. God became a man to live among us and to die for us. It is up to us to trust Him as Lord and to live by faith in Him. What a privilege and what a challenge. However, it is possible by His grace.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Zephaniah and Revelation 16.
Joseph probably felt very badly for his wife. It is hard enough to have a baby in the right environment. How could he keep her comfortable? What could he do to help her through the delivery? It is a wonderful event and terrifying at the same time.
Then, when you add to all of this the fact that this was the Son of God. Both Joseph and Mary had been assured by angels that they were to be the parents of the Messiah. Now, the Messiah was to be born in a strange place. Did they just trust God, or was it hard to understand why God was doing it this way? I believe they did have faith, but they must have had their concerns, too. What would it be like to be the parents of God's Son?
So many of these things were flooding their minds as the labor pains began, and the only thing they could do was trust the Lord to see them through. All they could do was ask Him to show them how to proceed into the future God had laid out for them.
Now, I ask you a question. Are our lives all that much different from Mary and Joseph's lives on the first Christmas Eve? I don't think so. Is there any one out there who is living in the ideal situation in life, and you have everything you need? Is there anyone who understands everything about what God is doing in your life? Finally, is there anyone who knows what will come tomorrow? Really, none of us knows these things, and all any of us can do is trust the Lord to provide for us and to prepare us to follow Him each day, one day at a time.
I pray this Christmas Eve that each of us will give our total attention to the greatest event in human history. God became a man to live among us and to die for us. It is up to us to trust Him as Lord and to live by faith in Him. What a privilege and what a challenge. However, it is possible by His grace.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Zephaniah and Revelation 16.