Luke 2:6 “While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”

For women who have given birth, we know that birthing the baby is only part of the event.  After Joseph received the Christ Child in his hands, he probably gave Jesus to Mary to hold while the rest of the birth process unfolded.  The cord.  The placenta or afterbirth.  We don’t normally think about these things and you might be thinking, “Hey, Barb, this is a bit too much information.  Gross.  We don’t need to think about this at Christmas.” 

Still yourself in the moment, in the reality, because there’s beauty in it, and a lesson for our lives.  Jesus didn’t just pop out looking like a fully swaddled, plastic baby Jesus in a plastic Nativity set. 

Unlike the whitewashed moment in the picture for today, in bloody reality, God HAS experienced—and in Jesus alone—WILL experience birth only once.  He was Mary’s firstborn.  And in His real, normal, and beautifully gross birth, He goes through the first of two events that mark humanity that previously God did not know … by experience.  In Jesus (and Jesus alone!) He’d know them both: Birth and Death.  Inaugurated into humanity in a bloody birth event.  And His life ending with His own blood shed for mankind.

Seeing that Jesus’ birth was both normal and human reminds us of what He entered when He was born.

Mary would deal with first and only experiences too.  Firstborn children are sometimes considered “practice children” because we make all our parenting mistakes with the first one and hopefully learn our lessons when the others come along.  Jesus was firstborn and yet, the only One we could ever call the Son of God.  And yet, think of how humbling it is: the God of the universe, entering the world from the womb of Mary just like any other baby enters through his/her mother’s birth canal.

Just as first-time fatherhood happened for Joseph and he’s dealing with midwifery … for Mary, first-time motherhood began.  Just like that.

* * *

Be Still, Mary.  Just because He’s My Son doesn’t mean He won’t be cared for or raised as any other firstborn son would be.

Be Still, Mary.  There’s beauty in this miracle, the intersection of the supernatural and the natural.  Enjoy how the miraculous can seem so entirely normal.  The miraculous and the natural are both in My wheelhouse and I can perform both with the same ease.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  In this birth, I AM not expecting you to do miraculous, only accept that I’m entering your ordinary in “Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” Philippians 2:5-7

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  You will never become gods, but I AM fully God and fully man in My Son Jesus.

Questions for Reflection: 

1. God may know all things, but there are things God will never experience.  What things will God never experience? (Hint: many are summed up in a 3-letter word rhyming with pin).  
2. In what ways do the miraculous and the natural collide?  Was Mary’s 9-month pregnancy natural after the initial miracle?   
3. I have gone to great lengths to describe Joseph’s likely role. In Leviticus 12:1-7, the purification rites for post-childbirth are mentioned.  What sacrifice was Joseph making? 
4. Knowing that her baby is God’s Son, how might Mary have been tempted to treat Him differently?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

PS. Again, please note (and forgive, perhaps) the inference of what Joseph would be dealing with, since it is not explicitly stated in Scripture.  I merely intend this as a corrective to a sanitized version of the birth of Christ that removes what is human in favor of what is superhuman.  Scripture tells us Joseph and Mary were there … and we know childbirth is what it is, Jesus’ included.  Normal Joe, normal Mary, and now normal Jesus from a very normal birth.  It all adds to the mystery and ought to bring us through stillness to the place of marveling at what Jesus gave up in order to be “God with us.”

As we continue our look at Still Christmas (Advent Devotionals 2017) and the earthly assaults upon spiritual stillness, I’d like to look at the birth of Christ from two different vantage points: Joseph’s and Mary’s.  The Bible doesn’t say that any other human being was there for Jesus’ birth.  No midwife.  No mother of Mary.  No mother-in law.  No sister.  No aunt.  No cousin.  No stranger.  Just Joseph and Mary.

I live in reality.  A woman might give birth on her own, but Joseph likely wasn’t waiting in the waiting room for a cow or a chicken to come out and tell him, 

“It’s a boy!” 

Joseph, being a guy, likely didn’t have much experience (if any) as a midwife. 

Yet, there he was. 

Mary’s in labor and he’s doing more than coaching Lamaze breathing and getting the camera ready. 

Luke 2:6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

More would be asked of him when he already knew that this isn’t his baby per se.  If there were paternity tests back then, whose DNA would have been Jesus’ father’s?  God doesn’t have DNA…or at least He didn’t until Jesus was born and took on flesh. 

So put yourself in Joseph’s sandals for a moment.  He didn’t sign up for this.  It took him by total surprise and he’s told to deal with it.  He may have been thinking,

Aw come’on, when Moses was born, even his mother had a midwife!” 

Not here.  Nope, it’s just Joseph and Mary.  That’s it.  So I don’t think it’s a stretch to believe that Joseph would be more intimately involved in the receiving of newborn Jesus than most men are in the delivery of their children.

* * *

Be Still, Joseph, you can do this! 

Be Still. I AM giving you a joy and a privilege no other man or woman will EVER experience.  Not even Mary.  Your eyes will be the first to see My Son.  Your hands will be the first to touch Him, no other person will touch Him before you.  Furthermore, My Son’s first human touch experience outside of the womb will be those carpenter hands of His earthly father.  Yes, Joseph, yours. 

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  1 Corinthians 2:9 “However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.'”  

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  Treasure this reward for your faithfulness.  I planned, Joseph, that this would be yours and yours only.  Forever.

Questions for Reflection: 

1. What obstacles might you have needed to get past in order to willingly do a task normally assumed by a midwife?  Or one traditionally belonging to the other sex?
2. Just speculation: whose DNA do you think Jesus had as His earthly father’s?  Why might Joseph’s DNA add to the burden of faith required in the miraculous?
3. First-time fathers don’t know how to be fathers just as first-time mothers don’t.  How might the demands of fatherhood have been complicated for Joseph because of who Jesus is?
4. How would spiritual stillness be required to know what to do?  How did Joseph’s being a righteous man help prepare him for that?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

PS.  I hope you don’t mind today’s inferences that aren’t explicitly stated in Scripture.  I firmly believe no mid-wife would have been there to be able to boast, to interfere, to gossip, to cast doubts and aspersions into this truly special moment.  I cannot bring myself to believe that Joseph who had been faithful to the angel’s assurances would have intentionally left Mary in her hour of need to birth the Christ Child on her own.  I believe Joseph loved Mary and would have embraced the role he’d never imagined because he believed God and his righteous heart loved deeply.  Furthermore, I believe God would have set this as a pattern of sacrificial love and the great importance of fathers.  For all American society is doing these days to men and fatherhood, I believe it’s high time to lift men up as the valued individuals they are and for the important role they play in a healthy, functioning society.  Without diminishing single motherhood as a difficult road some women are forced to journey, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say God wanted His Son Jesus to be birthed into a nuclear family of a husband and a wife–one man, one woman–as a demonstration of His will for mankind made in His image.  Since nothing is impossible for God, there is intentionality in His choice of parents, location, and the beautiful humility into which Christ was born.

Luke 2:5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.

Joseph and Mary plod along, days on the journey to Bethlehem.  Let’s continue our look at Still Christmas (Advent Devotionals for 2017) and let the Bible’s Christmas narrative be transparent and totally real with a look at this 3-day journey.

Did Mary and Joseph chat in lively conversation on a long road trip like young lovers?  Or were their thoughts elsewhere?  Scripture doesn’t say, but human nature being human nature, they probably had their share of quiet time.  While Joseph was likely contemplating a variety of things as the leader of their household and doing his duty to the government, Mary probably was thinking her own share of things. 

Maybe they talked about them together and hashed this stuff out as a couple.  Maybe each needed to process this whole situation individually.

My point is this: We cannot turn Mary and Joseph into felt-board or cardboard versions of themselves, characters without thoughts or feelings or a range of relationship hurdles.  They are often depicted with halos as the Holy Family, but the truth is they were flesh-and-blood normal Joe and normal Mary whose halos are just an artist’s rendering. 

Yet, we hold them up as a model family because of their obedience to God and that’s a well-deserved compliment to them.

Their obedience transcended life’s inconvenience.  The inconvenience to their marriage, their families, their travel for 3 days to fulfill a government duty and for Mary, the added inconvenience that pregnancy is frankly not a comfortable experience.  She’d no doubt gained weight, worried about how the pregnancy would go, had swollen feet and had the baby Jesus pressing on her bladder and into her lungs…just as other pregnant women experience.  She’s traveling a long way under very inconvenient circumstances because it was more important to her to obey God, day in, day out, all the time, even when it’s inconvenient.

 * * *

Be Still, Mary.  I will see you through this pregnancy and this journey.

Be Still, Joseph. My sovereignty didn’t end at the border of Galilee.  I AM still with you.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  As I was with Joshua, so I will be with you, Mary, and yes, I’ll be with you, Joseph.  I AM in this with you both.  Deuteronomy 31:8 “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  Though today’s path means inconvenience, this journey will be successful because it fulfills what is written: Matthew 2:6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'” 

Questions for Reflection:

1. How do you react to life’s inconveniences? 
2. Why do you think people want to make Mary and Joseph seem superhuman? 
3. In what ways does allowing them to be real make the birth narrative even more profound?
4. When Joseph and Mary are permitted to be normal people, dealing with inconvenience and obligation, what does that mean for our obedience?  Does it raise the bar for us to live as model Christians, too, or does it lower the bar to become an achievable, realistic goal, or both?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

Luke 2:4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.

Nazareth to Bethlehem.  That’s 98 miles.  Google says it takes 1 hr 53 minutes with light traffic on this low traffic road.  That’s by car.  But there weren’t cars back then.  You walked or you rode.  Most people walked.

So, this was a trek.  It was a duty to the government and it wasn’t like going to your local DMV to get a driver’s license renewal. You probably packed, bringing a change of clothes and money for lodging or whatever food you didn’t bring with you.  After all, it was a 3-day trip unless you’ve got a pregnant wife slowing the whole thing down.  As we look at Luke 2:4 in Still Christmas, Advent Devotionals for 2017, we can see that simply doing your duty to the government was an ordeal of biblical proportions.

Yet Joseph did it.  He did his duty.

How must Joseph have felt?  He’d been told in a dream not to be afraid to bring Mary home as his wife (Matthew 1:18-21), but a long journey wasn’t what he’d originally had in mind. Neither was a pregnant wife who wasn’t pregnant by him.  Yeah, an angel told him that Mary was carrying the Messiah, but here he is, journeying days fulfilling his duty when he wasn’t really “the dad.”  He didn’t even get a chance to weigh in on naming the baby when He’d be born.  In essence, God said to Joseph, you’ll call him Jesus.  You’ll do it and God’s Son won’t even be called Joseph Jr..

Prudence.  Honor.  Obedience.  Duty.  What’s in it for him?

What do you suppose went through his mind during Mary’s pregnancy and all along this trip to register?  Does he list Mary as his wife?  Probably.  That’s true.  What about family?  Does he list Jesus as his son…?  Joseph was a righteous man we’re told time and again.  Would it be a lie to say Jesus is his son since you can’t list God on the upcoming birth certificate?  Does Joseph quickly register before Mary gives birth to avoid all that weirdness?

 * * *

Be Still, Joseph.  I know I AM asking a lot.  But I know you’re the guy to have asked.  Because I know you.

Be Still, Joseph.  You’re not just in a side-car of My will for Mary.  You’re integral.  Remember that always.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  I promise to lead you one step at a time.  I AM with you.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  This is to fulfill Scripture.  Matthew 1: 2 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”–which means, “God with us.”

Questions for Reflection: 

1. When God is at the center of your life, how likely are you to wonder “What’s in it for me?” 
2. How is keeping God at the center of your life a key to Being Still? 
3. How do you feel about obligations and duty? 
4. How do you feel when someone else is the star of the show and you’re along for the ride? 
5. In what ways was Joseph integral to the birth narrative of Christ?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

Government. How often do we feel like our lives would be better without it?  Rules, regulations, and checklists.  Demands, division, diversion, and deception.  Ugh.  So much of government seems to be for its convenience, enrichment, and exertion of power.  But it doesn’t really seem to be for our benefit much of the time.  This is nothing new. 

But God can use governments, even without their knowledge or consent, to do His will. 

As we continue our Advent 2017 Devotional Series, Still Christmas, let’s see God doing this very thing.  Luke 2:1 “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to his own town to register.” 

For pregnant Mary and her betrothed Joseph, this couldn’t have come at a less convenient time.  Yeah, let’s make a long journey on foot or pose for a postage stamp with a sunsetty background with pregnant Mary on a donkey ready to give birth any minute.

Time out.

Scripture doesn’t tell us HOW they went, only that their lives were interrupted because Caesar Augustus got a bee in his bonnet and decided to issue a decree for a census.  Apparently, this would be kind of a routine travel tradition since verse 2 says it was the first census, suggesting more than one, maybe a string of them.  Maybe so long as Caesar Augustus was in control, it would be a tight leash and an annual trip like the swallows returning to Capistrano from Argentina. 

Anyway, on the surface, it was a government demand and intrusion, but in God’s timing, this first census was a divine interference. 

Scripture had to be fulfilled and that meant somehow Mary and Joseph couldn’t stay where they were.  And Joseph couldn’t go alone and still have the Messiah born where Scripture says He would be.  Mary needed to be there too. 

So God interferes and uses the government to do it.

 * * * 

Be Still, Mary and Joseph.  The census is an interference to get you to where you need to be.

Be Still.  No man’s interference will ever surprise Me or thwart My plan.  They’re often part of it.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  What Scripture says of My sovereignty is true:  Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.”

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  When you understand this is how I work, it puts a different frame around whatever is going on that disrupts your life.  I AM God and I know all things.  If it serves My will, I’ll let you in on it.  Otherwise, just trust that I know what I AM doing.

Questions for Reflection: 

1. What is often our gut reaction to government interference with our lives? 
2. How do we feel about being inconvenienced? 
3. What areas of your life might take on a different appearance with a God-sovereignty frame around it?  Would it be easier to accept traffic delays, long lines at the stores, relocations, job losses, etc. if you knew that God was still in control? 
4. In what ways is it harder to believe that God cares about such small things in the scope of eternity?  What does it tell you about God that no detail of your life escapes His notice?  

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

Wisdom is often shown in knowing when to speak and when to be silent.

***  

Zechariah had foolishly asked for proof of God’s blessing and he was forced to be silent while God brought it about.  He’d learned to be silent and learned to Be Still.  Then just as suddenly as he was rendered unable to speak, he is suddenly overflowing with praise for what God had done! 

***

Be Still When You Speak. 

Speak wisely.

***

Luke 1:64 “Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak, praising God. 65 The neighbors were all filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him. 67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: 68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. 69 He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David 70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), 71 salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us– 72 to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, 73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham: 74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven 79 to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.” 80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel.”

It’s highly doubtful that Zechariah had been planning for the 9+ months of silence what to say, as a rehearsed speech, or a sermon with all the right inflection points.  Our Scripture says that the Holy Spirit gave him words, on the spot, to speak as prophecy, beginning with praise.  Zechariah, conditioned to Be Still from months of being tongue-tied, yields to the Holy Spirit’s supplying of words.  

* * *

Be Still, Zechariah.  You can point to Me in your silence or with your words.

Be Still.  When speaking, your edifying words of truth and praise show the greater part of wisdom.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  I told you, Zechariah, that you’d be silent until your son was born.  What I spoke came to pass.  It always does.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.   Praise as a response to My goodness is something to do for your benefit, not something I require to be complete.  My servant King David understood this. Psalm 145:10 “All you have made will praise you, O LORD; your saints will extol you. 11 They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, 12 so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. 13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. 14 The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. 15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. 16 You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. 17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. 18 The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.”

Questions for Reflection: 

1. Read all of Psalm 145.  Why does reminding ourselves of God’s goodness and faithfulness help us? 
2. Does acknowledging God’s perfection—in any way—improve His situation?  How does it improve ours? 
3. In what ways is it instructive that Zechariah’s silence was inaugurated with doubt and unbelief but ends when he would offer praise and acknowledgment of God’s goodness to His people? 

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

Circumcision—the bris ceremony—is a family celebration for the Jews.  It reminds them of the covenant and at its most faithful heart, it’s more than just a tradition to observe.  It’s a big deal for Jewish families and everyone gets together for the event and parties afterward with food.  As we continue our look at the Christmas narrative in Still Christmas (Advent Devotional Series 2017), let’s take a look at the recorded bris ceremony of John the Baptist.  

Luke 1:59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.” 61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.” 62 Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.”

Everyone else was planning on giving him the name of his father Zechariah, but Elizabeth remembered that God provided this blessing and the name he was to be given.  Zechariah has been totally silent from the day he saw the angel so Elizabeth was the one to speak: “He is to be called John.” 

Other people began to pressure her.  Then they tried to override her by motioning for Zechariah to nix that whole John thing.

Months of being in God’s time-out-corner had worked wonders on Zechariah’s heart.  He had plenty of time to remember the fear and to process the angelic announcement.  Remember? Luke 1:13 “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth…17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous– to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” 

Zechariah surely remembered the “How can I be sure of this?” Luke 1:18 misstep.  He’d been forced to Be Still.  He saw God had been faithful even when Zechariah himself had not been a paragon of faith.  Now, he had every proof that he’d needed that God was giving him a son and things were unfolding as God had planned.  He remembered the name: John.

 * * *

Be Still, Elizabeth and Zechariah.  Things are being fulfilled in your lives. Get ready for a wonderful ride.

Be Still.  Peer-pressure melts away in My presence.  Who is the one you obey?  I’m glad you displayed that it’s Me.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  My plan begins with announcement and unfolds just as I desire.  Your son is part of that plan.  Isaiah 42:9 “Behold, the former things have come to pass, Now I declare new things; Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.”

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  My Servant will come in your lifetimes, Elizabeth and Zechariah.  Your son John will prepare the way for Him.

Questions for Reflection:

1. Have you ever faced peer-pressure or had someone try to override what you knew to be your rightful decision?  How did it make you feel? 
2. If you’re married, has anyone ever tried to work between you and your spouse to overturn your decision?  What actions do you see Elizabeth and Zechariah taking that might help you?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

It’s hard to argue with results. 

For all the surprise that aging Elizabeth’s pregnancy provided, the birth of a son was something even neighbors and friends could celebrate.  

Luke 1:57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

As we continue our Advent Devotionals for 2017, Still Christmas, let’s continue to make-it-real with the Bible narrative and see the dangers to stillness presented with blessing, with a hope being realized.

How would you have felt if a long-cherished dream finally came to fruition? 

Would you be so over-the-moon happy that you could hardly contain yourself? 

Would you be so excited about the results that you forgot to remember who provided them for you? 

Would you take time to remember God when you’re so happy and in the presence of others celebrating with you?

It’s hard to Be Still in such times.  In fact, times of great blessing are times in which humanity is weakest.  It’s hard to Be Still.  It’s easy to forget.

* * *

Be Still, Elizabeth.  Take time to be joyful in the mercy I have shown you.

Be Still.  I rejoice with you and receive glory in your joy.  I love giving life and bringing happiness to people.

Be Still and Know that I AM God when you’re tempted to be more in love with the blessing than with Me.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  Remember the caution I spoke to your ancestors through My servant Moses: Deuteronomy 6:10 “When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you– a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant– then when you eat and are satisfied, 12 be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”

Questions for Reflection: 

1. Why might it be easier to forget God in times of fulfilled blessing? 
2. When others are celebrating along with you, is it easier or harder to remember God?  Why? 
3. We can remember the time of misery (slavery) or we can remember the God who redeemed us out of it.  What happens when we focus solely on slavery in our past instead of the present life, or even forward to the deliverance from our sufferings? 
4. It’s often said that Memory Lane is a great place to visit, but a terrible place to dwell.  Are we actually living in freedom or slavery, if we keep looking back? How do we balance cherishing memories and living in the freedom and hope for our future?
5. When hope is realized, where do we find greater rest for our hearts as we learn to Be Still and Know that He is God: in the past, the present, or the future?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

How Mary could remain calm is beyond my understanding.  Not only would there be the shock and excitement, after all, it’s not every day you even meet an angel (let alone have one speak to you). 

But inevitably, there would arise judgment from other people.  Those who wouldn’t understand.  No one could, really.  Bear God’s Son?  You’re kidding, right, Mary?  But for some, it would go beyond the beautiful land of marvel and incredulity into the dark territory of judgment and condemnation. 

Keep Calm and Carry On.

Be Still and Trust God.

How can you Be Still when people judge you?  Have you ever been there? We could learn a few things from Mary on this one, too. 

Luke 1:56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

About three months she was gone.  Long enough– beginning at Elizabeth’s sixth month until her ninth.  Technically long enough to watch the birth of Elizabeth’s son John or maybe to assist with the birth process she’d experience herself in just a few short months.  Scripture only says “about three months.”  Long enough for her to begin showing.  No hiding it now.  No turning back.  Might as well face it.

She didn’t return home to where judgment would be worst until God had prepared her to endure it.  Maybe she’d seen the older, wiser Elizabeth deal with people whose outward actions are joyful, but behind closed doors, perhaps another story.  Granted, Elizabeth wouldn’t have the scorn of judgment, but she most certainly faced a few raised eyebrows.  After all these years with Zechariah and (snickering) NOW a baby? 

It’s not always outright judgment and accusation, it can be the sharp edge of a simple joke, maybe about the Ancient Near East version of a milkman or being a cougar while Zechariah was away on business. Maybe the drift of something in the air or beneath the surface, that talking about you behind your back.  Have you ever known it?  I’m fairly certain Elizabeth did.  And I’d bet my bottom dollar that Mary knew it painfully and all too well.

 * * *

Be Still, Mary.  When people judge you, I want you to remember this, Mary: it’s more a reflection on them than it is on you.

Be Still.  In time, I will vindicate you.  Then you will proclaim as David did before you, Psalm 35:27 “May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, ‘The LORD be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.'”

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  In the end, only My judgments will stand.  All others will melt away as I silence your accusers, even ones you know nothing about.  Even ones generations in the future.

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  I AM the One True Judge and LORD.  I have a special place in My heart for the humble servant who relies on Me.  My Word says in Deuteronomy 32:36 “The LORD will judge his people and have compassion on his servants when he sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free.”  You can count on it.

Questions for Reflection: 

1. How likely are you to want to fight your own battles and argue with your accusers? 
2. The Bible has examples in both Old and New Testaments of people offering their own defense: Moses, Elisha, Peter, John, and Paul.  How do we know whether to remain silent because it’s a battle for God to fight versus when do we need to do it ourselves? 
3. Did Mary offer a defense of herself before others?  What does Scripture tell us occurred (Luke 1:26-2:40)? 
4. Read Matthew 10:18-20.  When we faithfully speak in our own defense, is it really us?

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.

One look at our world of social media and we can easily conclude no one really wants to give up their 15 minutes of fame in order to experience stillness.  People craft ways of going viral and unfortunately, they are not only legion in number but way too often Legion in origin (Luke 8:26-37).  Much of the worst (live-streamed murder, etc.) seems to have subsided, gone underground, or maybe site moderation has developed a stricter code (which is its own issue, preferable to live-streamed sin).  Yet celebrity, or the hope of it, lurks around every corner.

As we continue our look at Still Christmas, it’s worth our while to see how to Be Still When Celebrity Tempts. 

It’s easy to take Bible stories and make cardboard cutout versions of humanity, or gild people with superhuman qualities and put them on a pedestal.  We do ourselves a disservice when we do that.  Or worse, it becomes idolatry.  Yet, there are things we can learn about godly living by seeing how those before us have dealt with temptations.

Mary surely knew the temptation to claim celebrity, but she resisted it and was blessed for it. 

Importantly, she turned her praise upward instead of inward.  She didn’t look at herself.  She looked to God.  She reminded herself of God’s supremacy and her humble state apart from Him. 

Luke 1:46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me– holy is his name. 50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. 51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. 52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful 55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.”

If God has chosen to do good to her and for her, it’s because of who He is and not what she was.

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Be Still, Mary.  I chose you because your heart humbly looks to Me. 

Be Still.  Generations will call you blessed and you are… because you know the difference between receiving blessing and being the ultimate source of it.  

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  Let your hope and confidence be in Me. About My Son Jesus, the Bible says, Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Be Still and Know that I AM God.  My mercy is better than any celebrity. 

Questions for Reflection: 

1. Pause for a moment and think about celebrity.  Do you wish you were famous, even for a minute?
2. Many Roman Catholics I know are concerned about the blurring of veneration of the Virgin Mary as Jesus’ mother to Mary-worship in some areas of the world.  Based upon the Magnificat (Mary’s song from above), why do you think worship of Mary would be thoroughly rejected by Mary herself?
3. Read Psalm 145:13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. 14 The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. 15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. 16 You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. 17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. 18 The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. 
4. How does knowledge of who God is correct any desire we might have for celebrity? 
5. What characteristics are noteworthy of celebrity? 
6. Compare those to the characteristics of God in this passage.  Habakkuk 3:2 LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.

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Still Christmas, Advent 2017 Devotionals began December 3, 2017 and are archived from that date.