What do you think it was like for
Mary to have had to tell her parents and her fiancé, Joseph, that she was
pregnant? At first Joseph didn’t believe her and I seriously doubt that her
parents did either. I can’t help thinking that there must have been feelings of
anger, family disgrace, and gut-wrenching disappointment with Mary. Whether
this lasted for days, weeks, or longer we do not know, but it must have been a
very difficult “Christmas season” for a young girl like Mary whose reputation
was being unjustly trashed! Then there was the three or four day trip to
Bethlehem on a donkey or in a wooden cart. That had to be difficult (to say the
least) for Mary who was nine months pregnant! And how do you think Mary might
have felt when her baby was not born in a nice warm home in a semi-comfortable
bed like other babies. He was born in a dirty stable where animals ate, slept
and did their business! Finally, Mary and Joseph soon found out that their
baby’s life was in danger from the ruthless King Herod. What a Christmas!!!
Someone recently put a sign in one of
the restrooms where I work that asks, “How has God blessed you this Christmas?”
Ideally, Christmas is a time of happiness and joy—but that is not always the
case for many people. For many, the Christmas season is a time of painful
memories, disappointments, or difficult family relationships. If Christmas time
is hard for you, that doesn’t mean God has forgotten you or is angry with you.
Much to our chagrin, God’s blessing sometime comes through suffering, as it did
for Mary.
