LUKE 2:8–20 – And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

THEME OF THE DAY. A MARY-LIKE CHRISTMAS. It would be fitting to direct today’s nugget to Christmas. I am sure in many homes, today’s scripture will be read in living rooms, at dinner tables, or perhaps sitting around a nice fire or woodstove. There will be the sharing of the various characters in the Christmas story. We will talk of the angels bursting through the sky proclaiming the good news. Maybe we will focus on the sleepy shepherds suddenly awakened and racing to the place of Christ’s birth to affirm its truth. Ultimately, though, our sharing will reach the zenith of the Christmas story at the stable with Joseph, Mary and the Christ child. Yes, there is a lot of excitement around Christmas and that is good and not so good. First, it is good to get excited about the birth of our Savior. Very good. It is the best news ever and we should be excited. However, excitement, unless turned to Mary-like conduct, will fade. Like the excitement of gifts on December 25th that fades soon after the new year begins. And that is why excitement over spiritual truth that doesn’t go beyond excitement is not good, not good at all. Enter a Mary-like Christmas. What does she do with all this excitement about her Son’s birth – the Son of God and all that was associated with His birth? Here is what we read – But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.

Mary practices one of the most important spiritual disciplines a Christian must do to grow in the grace and knowledge of the One born on Christmas Day – meditation. She does so in two directions. First, she treasured up the truth or placed the highest value upon her Lord. Friends, the value we place on knowing Christ will determine the intensity of our seeking Christ which includes the hard work of meditating upon Him in His Word. From the value Mary had toward Jesus, she pondered all the things about Him. To “ponder” is to “mull over in one’s mind”, to “think upon intensely”, and to “fix one’s thoughts” on an object or person. For us? This means we go beyond reading the Word of God to deeply thinking on the Word of God. It means going from the excitement of Christmas to having a Mary-like Christmas; of turning Christmas excitement into heart transformation through the discipline of meditation – treasuring and pondering the truths of Him who is Christmas.

PRAYER: “Father, quiet my heart and discipline my mind to think of the wonder of Christmas and its impacts.”

QUOTE: “Christmas isn’t a day of celebration but the message of transformation for each day of our lives.”