If God does send an Angel-Gram...
As we are mere days away from Christmas, my thoughts have been circling around the events that occurred on the night of Christ’s birth. As a woman, imagine with me…you are about eight months pregnant and find out you are being forced to participate in a first of its kind census. You must travel for days maybe weeks on the back of a donkey to a strange city with no guarantee of lodging when you arrive there. There isn’t a Motel 8 to sleep at along the way or hospital to handle the birth. I would venture to say that this trip was beyond uncomfortable for Mary and Joseph. Granted they were accustomed to this type of travel, but she was still very near to full term pregnancy. You can imagine the swollen ankles and feet, back pain, contractions, exhaustion…and the need to pee every ten minutes. And imagine how Joseph must have felt! He had a very pregnant wife to care for during the course of a long journey. He needed to ensure her safety and health – she was carrying the Savior of the world in her womb! No pressure!
The Bible does not give a lot of detail about the trip to Bethlehem
“And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.”
Luke 1:28-38
Well let’s start with the fact that the angel repeatedly tells Mary that she has found favor with the God of the universe! How would you react if you were chosen by God out of all the women in the history of the world to carry His Son?! Well, I’m naturally a little dramatic, so it would probably include laughing, crying hysterically, laughing again, and then crying again. Wait. So you want me to do WHAT?! Did she freak out or pass out or get all girlie? No. She was calm, but concerned why the angel had appeared to her. If God had found favor with her, why was He taking time out of His busy schedule to send an Angel-Gram? A free goat or some extra oil in the lamp would have been sufficient! (Ha ha…that made me smile.) Her next question when she found out she wasn’t in trouble? How is that possible?? A very logical concern since she was a virgin, after all. The angel answered that the Holy Ghost would come upon her. It sounds a little science fiction if you let yourself get carried away, but I think it must have been the most special experience in her young life.
I can hardly imagine what she must have felt. The deepest motherly love possible certainly, but also awe and wonder? Maybe hope for her people? Perhaps she had a new heart of gratitude to the Father in heaven? To feel those first flutters of movement and remember that it was not just another human life, but the Son of the Almighty within her! I am not a mother yet, but one day when I am I pray I have a deeper understanding of her heart.
After settling all the logical concerns and questions, her words in verse 38 melt my heart every time I read them: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.” She immediately accepted her role as a servant, a vessel to be used by the Lord. What a humbling picture of the mother of our Lord. Calmly accepting the role that God has given her…and what a blessing it was! My Christmas prayer for each of us is that the Lord finds favor with us – that we allow ourselves to receive the blessing of being a handmaiden of the Lord. Don’t be afraid or even surprised if God asks something quite extraordinary of you – seek new opportunities that only He can give. And if He does send an Angel-Gram (I hope that happens to me!) don’t be afraid – for with God all things are possible!
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