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Advent: Pretty Cards Don't Portray Real Story
MOLINE, IL (December 22, 2005) - Editor's note: In preparation for the
Christmas observance, Covenant Communications is sharing devotionals
that originally appeared in local Covenant church newsletters and are
being published here by permission. The following comes from Randall
Surey of First Covenant Church in Moline.
By Randall Surey
One of the things we often fail to understand is that the original
Christmas was an overwhelming event for those who experienced it. Our
Christmas cards tend to be picturesque scenes that do not reflect the
difficulty and hardship of the event. And in our rush to celebrate each
year, we fail to consider how traumatic it was for those involved.
The announcement of the angel Gabriel to Mary had to be a very heavy
burden for a girl who was most likely in her middle teens. How in the
world do you explain such a thing to your parents and friends and
especially to your fiancé? We know that Joseph had his struggles with
the whole thing because Matthew tells us of his plans and of his
encounter with the angel of the Lord that changed his plans. We also
know that Mary was sent to spend some time with a relative, Elizabeth,
perhaps to get her out of the public eye for a while.
Then there was the whole census problem. It required Joseph to travel to
Nazareth to register, and Mary went with him on the 90-plus-mile trip.
We have no idea if she was required to go, but it might have been best
to get her away from Nazareth.
Our Christmas cards also tend to show Mary riding on a donkey, but it is
most likely that they both walked the entire distance since they
probably could not afford a donkey. Nine months pregnant and walking 90
miles in difficult weather. Then you have the difficulty of finding a
place to stay and ending up having Jesus born in a stable. Again, no
matter how picturesque our Christmas cards make it, it was still a
smelly old stable. Add into the mix the visit by the shepherds and the
wise men, Herod's attempt to kill the child and the exile journey into
Egypt, and you have a sequence of events that would challenge the faith
of even the strongest person.
Yet that was why God did it that way. One of the names for the Messiah
was to be Emmanuel, which means God with us. Mary and Joseph could never
have made their way through such a sequence of events unless God was
leading them step by step and preparing the way before them. Another
name was to be Prince of Peace. The only way that Mary and Joseph could
have made their way through the "mess" they found themselves in is if
God gave to them a sense of peace that they were doing what God called
them to do.
And finally, the Messiah was to be known as Almighty God. If you
consider all that had to happen, all the preparations that needed to be
made, all the pieces that had to fall into place, it took the Almighty
God to pull it all off. Christmas is a celebration of God's love,
provision and might. It is a reminder that the same love, provision and
might is available to us in the midst of our storm-filled lives. What
more can we say but Hallelujah! What a Savior!
(Editor's note: to read earlier Advent messages, please see:
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