Christmas Through Mary's Eyes

While I understand that, when I grab a free moment, I just post recipes, I wanted to take a minute and share my heart.  With the Christmas season soon approaching, and every one busy buying gifts, we seem to always get to Christmas and truly forget all of the small details that lead to Christ's birth and just why we celebrate that day! Think about it-what if the decree hadn’t been passed? Would Mary and Joseph have even been in Bethlehem? And what if Christ had never come?!?!? That is even bigger-our great sin debt would have never been paid!!! There are so many great songs that we get to listen to once a year that remind us just what Christmas is all about-“Hark the herald, angels sing-Glory to the new born KING!” “O holy night, the stars are brightly shining. It is the night of our dear SAVIOR’S birth!”

BUT!!! Do you ever stop and think about Mary and Joseph? Like REALLY think about them?!?! In October 2012, I got married. About a month later, Neal and I found out that we were expecting. We were so excited, but when December came, I had a new outlook on Christmas.  I was pregnant with our first baby. It was as though I looked at everything through Mary’s eyes. Here she was, told by an Angel that she was going to be a Mommy! First off, she was a virgin and was still going to conceive! (Luke 1:28-38) MIND BLOWING!!!! She, without any questions or backtalk, willingly accepted!!! Secondly, what about all of those people and their comments?!? There were people who told Neal and I we should have waited, and then there were people who were excited. Did Mary experience that too? I’m sure she did! Next, she was told that He would be Holy. We’re not talking about her carrying a preacher or a missionary. She was carrying God’s son. She was to give birth to a son who would live a perfect, sinless life. He would one day be beaten; He would carry the sins of the world and be crucified. Sins that included His mother’s sins!! I mean, that seriously just blows my mind! He needed her to live and be brought into this world, but without Him, she wouldn’t be able to live!!

I will never forget there was one particular Sunday morning in December that it really hit me hard.  I just couldn’t shake the thought that there was this tiny baby growing inside me. The tiny little hands and tiny little toes, the sweet baby face and soft delicate skin-one day soon, I would feel him or her kick. All I could think about was Mary. What all went through her mind? How did she react the first time she felt Him kick or get the hiccups? Did she hold her belly tight and long to hold Him close? Now that I have had a second baby, I wonder-Was that first pregnancy perfect and incomparable to the others?

Hands down, my favorite song for Christmas is “Be Born in Me” by Francesca Battistelli.  It accurately describes how I felt at that time in my life.  I was scared of the unknown. What was this baby inside of me going to be like? I wasn't carrying the long awaited Savior though! Mary KNEW that she had been specifically chosen for this task. Mary also knew that there was something special about this baby she was carrying and would soon give birth to.  Mary knew that this baby was going to somehow save the world, but instead of being scared or asking God “Why?” she just quietly sat and “Pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) Listen to this song and think of Mary. Think about everything that she was pondering-both while she was pregnant and as she held that tiny miracle in her arms! Think about the rush of emotions you felt the first time you held a tiny baby. If you're a Mom, think back to the first time you got to put your arms around that sweet little babe. Mary was holding the long awaited Savior. He was her tiny son, but he was also her great Savior!!!

Whitley Grayson

Nora Lou