Where has December gone? Where has the year gone? Next week is Christmas and many of us still have tons of things to do. I know I have to do so much to prepare, especially before I head out to California. I’m so excited! This year has brought so many new experiences as well as new friends. Many have been the times that I’ve been in the valleys working my way up the mountains treading to get to the top. Many mountain tops I have reached just to get too and through the next valley. Those cycles are just part of life; the beautiful seasons that make up who I am. As I reflect on this past year, there is one thing I noticed stayed constant. That was and is the love my God has for me through His Son Jesus Christ. He is the only constant I can hold onto and depend upon when the rest of the world is in anarchy. You, as a child of God have the same constant in your life. For God said “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5 NIV).
Mary the mother of Jesus came from humble beginnings. She never wore fine clothes. She never exalted herself, nor did she ever enter a palace. As a young girl in Nazareth, Mary was more serious and devout than the other girls of her age and was more given to believing in the wonders of the God of her forefathers. She was too humble to even think that she would be the center of humanity’s greatest miracle. One night Mary, a young Jewish girl, received a visit from the angel Gabriel. She was not only surprised, but fearful and troubled. Why had he come? The angel Gabriel, known as the messenger for God came to announce to her that she was to be the mother of the promised Messiah (Luke 1:35). Mary, who was a direct descendant of King David, would give Jesus the right to ascend the Jewish throne.
The Promise, a gift of such magnitude was predestined to be delivered through Mary for the salvation of the world. The certainty of God’s Promise was that since “there was no one greater for Him to swear by, He (God) swore by himself, saying I will surely bless you… Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:13-14; 17-19). However, not everyone was going to accept the gift. Jesus, God incarnate was born of a woman, experienced childhood and grew up to be a man, underwent every imaginable hurt, grief, pain and suffering so that we would have a chance at life. “For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance – now that He has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed” (Hebrews 9:15).
Although Mary was fearful and troubled, it was her unconditional love, faith and belief in the Almighty God that protected and delivered her. Will you have that same faith?
Praying that your spirit rejoices as you remember how valued you are because of God’s Promise of eternal life through His Son Jesus Christ!
In His Service,
Pastor Jenny
2 Corinthians 7:1 “Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”
December 23, 2011
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