Mary

Can You Keep Watch on Christmas Eve? Psalm 46

/ Anthea Kotlan / 1 Comment

Take a moment in the days leading up to Christmas to light a candle and pause. I know you don’t have time. Could taking a moment of quietly being present in this season could provide the endurance needed to continue your own journey into the Christmas season? This is the marathon and not the sprint.

Maybe there’s no candle handy. Can you picture a dark room with a small flame dipping and weaving in the gentle night’s breeze while Joseph sleeps nearby?

Imagine Mary gazing up at an inky sky. One by one the stars shine brighter and brighter. The world is about to change forever. Labor will start soon, and a new baby will be born.
Does she need a moment to catch up to all she has been carrying?

Did Mary cry out to God that night amid the dark uncertainty while bearing the weight of the savior of the world? She might be a frightened teenager and displaced person. God chose a vulnerable young woman utterly dependent upon the goodwill of her husband, and one who is fully experiencing the discomfort of the final month of pregnancy. Did her feet swell? Did her back ache? Road tripping on a donkey may not have been ideal.

Bethlehem was not her hometown, and these were not her people. A Roman census has commanded these two to travel to Joseph’s hometown to be counted. The timing is hard, and yet by following a government mandate these two fulfill what scripture promised. However, Mary’s mother lives miles away in Nazareth. There must have been a sense of isolation. Where will Mary find peace in this dark night?

In Psalm 46 the psalmist cries out to God as a refuge and strength. Did Mary do the same? 

1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah
Psalm 46:1-3 ESV

What causes mountains to move into the sea or tremble? Earthquakes

Did Mary feel her life was experiencing an earthquake of sorts? Her identity was changing, and she was about to become the mother of the savior of the world. Labor would be hard. Her body would be changed forever. Months earlier she had surrendered to God all her own plans and dreams. She had praised God for it all. But now, in the dark night, just before the dawn of a new reality, did she have doubts? Was she still so very certain?

4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.
6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
Psalm 46:4-7 ESV

While the nations rage, the kingdoms totter, and doubts assail even the most faithful, but God is near during it all. His presence makes all the difference and provides the fortress of protection. While this doesn’t guarantee the absence of suffering, God’s company in all of it makes it bearable. Mary must have had her moments of overwhelm and frustration.

On this eve of Christmas Eve, will you invite the Lord into your places of uncertainty? Can you keep company with Him even when it is hard to believe?

This time of year can be hard for everyone. The expectations stack up. Endless pressure builds to do and be more. Distractions steal our peace. Can I choose to listen for God’s still small voice even in the chaos?

The Psalmist continues.
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
Psalm 46:8-11 ESV

What happens when I choose to behold the works of the Lord?
It changes my focus.

What happens when I choose to be still, even for a moment?
In the stillness of God’s presence, I find peace.

When I gaze upon what God is doing, the things of the world pale in comparison.

What happens when God burns the chariots or breaks the bow and shatters the spear?
This marks the permanent end of war. It points to the ultimate reconciliation between God and man. Someday God will reign for ever and ever on His throne. It’s a now and not yet reality because while we catch a glimpse of it from time to time, permanent peace will not be achieved until Jesus returns once and for all. We live in that tension between Jesus’ arrival on earth as a baby and before He returns in a final victory.

So, on this Christmas Eve night or in the days just before, we sit perched waiting like Mary might have. Looking skyward at those incredible stars and wondering when will that ultimate peace come? Verse 11 says, “the Lord of Hosts is with us.” This name of God means, the victor. The King of glory, who commands the armies of heaven and will eventually defeat all His enemies in this world once and for all.

Will you keep watch with me tonight?

How Can I Say Yes to Kingdom-Size Assignments? Psalm 28

/ Anthea Kotlan / 3 Comments

I can still remember the absolute shock I felt standing holding the phone in the middle of shared office space at Texas A&M in August of 1991.

“Your pregnancy test was positive,” the nurse from my doctor’s office said. 

I found myself slowly sitting down as joy and utter confusion washed over me. How could this be? I had been told this wasn’t possible.

More questions ricocheted around my mind in time to the beat of my steps back to my classroom that afternoon.

Is this why I’ve been so tired? I probably shouldn’t have gone whitewater rafting. Did that hurt the baby? How will I tell my husband?

While the announcement of my first pregnancy came to me over a landline, Mary received the good news of baby Jesus from an angel named Gabriel.

30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
(Luke 1:30-38 ESV)

Mary also wondered about how this pregnancy could be. Indeed, she also carried the tension of joy and utter confusion. And yet, she became the very first person to believe in Jesus. Her humble acceptance of a holy assignment changed the world.

On the fourth Sunday of Advent, which falls on December 19 this year, churches worldwide light the angel candle. This one symbolizes peace and the good news the Angel Gabriel brought to Mary regarding the upcoming birth of Jesus, the world’s savior. Finally, God had answered the cry of his oppressed people with the promised Messiah.

In Psalm 28, the fearful psalmist cries out to a promise-keeping God in full confidence that he will be heard and God will act justly.

1 To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands
    toward your most holy sanctuary.
3 Do not drag me off with the wicked, with the workers of evil, who speak peace with their neighbors while evil is in their hearts.
4 Give to them according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds; give to them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward.
5 Because they do not regard the works of the Lord or the work of his hands, he will tear them down and build them up no more.

Psalm 28:1-5 ESV

Thank you, Lord, that you hear my prayers any time I cry out to you. You are never too busy and distracted. You will bring perfect justice to this world.

6 Blessed be the Lord! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy.
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.
8 The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed.
9 Oh, save your people and bless your heritage! Be their shepherd and carry them forever.
Psalm 28:6-9 ESV

Thank you, Lord. I choose to bless you because You still hear the panicked prayers of mothers and issue abundant mercy for your good purposes.  I am grateful for the gift of strength you provide. You alone are always worthy of my heart’s trust. You are my provider of refuge. Therefore, I can do all you ask me to do because You have promised to be my shield, strength, and shepherd. You sent your Son as a tiny baby who grew up to save and serve us as our Shepherd and King, now and always.

A Prayer for Kingdom-Size Assignment

Lord, as I light the fourth Advent candle in the final days before Christmas, let me recall the good news of your Son, Jesus Christ. Help me remember the faithful obedience of Mary. Even when she couldn’t fully comprehend what was being asked of her, she accepted that You would make the way. Help me to obey You, even when I don’t understand. Give me the strength to follow through entirely on Kingdom-size assignments that I cannot possibly accomplish in my own strength. Help me to look to You for protection and provision. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

How about you? Do you ever feel overwhelmed by an assignment that seems too much?