Stillness

31Dec
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. - Psalm 62:5 

Be still, and know that I am God. 
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! -Psalm 46:10 

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
-John 1:14 


The month of December can be overwhelming to people. While society encourages us to join in the festivities, be joyful and celebrate, as a mother I often struggle to find time to even sit down. And yet over and over this message continued to find its way to me: find stillness, find time to meditate and be with God. Listen for the real meaning of this month, the Christmas story. Go on that journey to Bethlehem that was not just back then, it is right here, right now. 


I began listening to daily meditations that took me through advent and the journey to Bethlehem. We started at the beginning when the angel Gabriel told Mary that she would bear a son, even though she was engaged already to Joseph and was a virgin. It made me stop to think how Mary must have felt. Even though she implicitly trusted God’s plan for her and agreed to carry God’s son into this world, she must have felt overwhelmed. 


As the story progressed, I began to see it in a different way. This was a difficult, chaotic time for Mary and Joseph. They were excited about the baby, but stressed out. Especially when they get called to Bethlehem by King Harrod right before Mary is about to give birth. They have to rush to get all their belongings ready, then go on a long journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem with a very pregnant Mary. Then they get there and there is nowhere for them to stay and they end up in a dirty stable. This situation is probably very overwhelming! It is not how they planned or pictured the birth of the baby to be. But despite all the chaos and noise all around them, Mary and Joseph remained calm and steadfast in the plan that God had for them. They found time to slow down and be still. To keep reminding themselves of what this journey was all about - the birth of a child who would change everything.


If Mary and Joseph could go on this chaotic journey back then and find time for God, then I could certainly find time for God now. In all the Christmas chaos we experience as mothers trying to create the perfect Christmas memories for our families, the real meaning of Christmas can get lost in the shuffle. We are dealing with overwhelming issues such as big family personalities, late Amazon deliveries, burned Christmas cookies, forgetting to get that one relative a present, a botched attempt at an old family recipe, and missing our own beloved Mother who made Christmas so special. I think of Mary and the chaos around her as she traveled a long, hard road to Bethlehem; not knowing what would happen with King Herod, not knowing where they would stay or where she would give birth, or what would happen after. Throughout all this chaos, Mary remained steadfast in her faith that God was leading her right to where she needed to be. Right up that road to the stable where a baby king was born who would change everything. As God leads us through the month of December and Advent, Christmas and up to Epiphany, may we remain as faithful as Mary, and find time to be still and rest with God.


Musical Reflection - CeCe Winans - Be Still and Know

Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, my soul waits for you in stillness. Amen. 

Rest

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