Treasuring Up All These Things

"The angel answered, . . . 'So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.'" ~Luke 1:35

"'Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You [the shepherds] will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger' . . . So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the Baby, Who was lying in the manger. When they had seen Him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this Child . . . But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." ~Luke 2:11-12, 16-17, 19

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." ~Matt. 5:8

This time of year, we watch wonderful movies about the birth of Jesus and it always seems that, as much as they try to make it real for us, they usually have a woman in her 20's or 30's playing Jesus' mother, Mary. Even the faces of most mantle-top Nativity scenes portray Mary as an older women. In reality, Mary was only about 13-15 years old.

Mary was just past what many would term "a little girl." She was barely in her teens. Why did God choose such a young girl as the mother of His Son? Possibly because girls married so much younger back then and the Savior's mother HAD to be physically pure; but could it have also been that a young Jewish girl ~ raised with oral Jewish tradition always on someone's lips ~ would take God at His word? That while listening to the stories, that she had treasured up the things of God in her heart? That she would believe and not doubt? 

I think that Mary had to not only be physically pure, but she still had to have that purity of heart ~ the trust and faith of what was left of the child within her. When a child trusts, they hold what is said in their heart. So, when she heard, Mary held the words of the angel in her heart ~ the safest, purest part of herself ~ and God knew that she would. 

Christmas is such a time of wonder and child-likeness and it touches the heart of all Christians. Maybe the reason why we often say that "we have Jesus in our heart" is because, at Christmas-time, we let ourselves become like children again and God reminds us to treasure all the things of Jesus' miraculous birth inside the safest, purest part of ourselves: our heart.

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><