Christmas

It is almost one week until Christmas and on Sunday night our church is having our annual Christmas play. This year our Christmas play is very basic and we are having people say parts of Mary, Joseph, Shepherds and such. Well, I am Mary and it has got me thinking. Mary was my age when she got married and had Jesus. Besides that, her marriage was most likely arranged and so she probably didn't even know Joseph that well. To top that off, after they were betrothed - or engaged - she was told by Gabriel that she was pregnant with the Son of God. Imagine telling that to your parents, let alone your fiance. The law that people who got pregnant before marriage could be stoned was like a cherry on top of a sundae.

This whole thing just gets me to wondering if I could've been that faithful and withstood everything that happened before Jesus' birth and after it too. Imagine, holding Jesus in your arms, and then thinking that He is the Saviour of the whole world! But then, after looking at him as a baby, you'd remember the prophecy in the Old Testament that Jesus would end up dying for our sins. I'm glad that I wasn't in Mary's position. It'd be so difficult for me to raise a child, and love him with all my heart, knowing that he would end up dying for ME! I know I'm saying "imagine" a lot, but seriously think about it. You have a baby and then when He's 33 He'd die for you. I've heard people say how if I was the only one on earth that Jesus would've still come just for me, and I begin to wonder how difficult that must've been for Mary to watch - her firstborn son being crucified for the whole world's sin, knowing that He was dying for her sin as well.

I guess that I'm just trying to put things in perspective becasue I know that a lot of churches have Christmas programs involving the nativity scene and characters. All in all, Mary must have been strong in her life with God the Father, and strong emotionally to go through everything that she had to.

Lastly, I just have to say that it must've been humbling for Mary to hold baby Jesus in her arms. I would feel so unworthy.

Merry Christmas!!!!