To shepherds in a dark quiet field an angel suddenly appeared, clothed in the glory of the Lord announcing, “Behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all the people.” This was followed by the heavenly host praising God. Then the window to heaven shut and it was dark again
Jesus was born into a world so inhospitable that an innkeeper relegated His laboring mother to give birth amongst animals. Children were so disposable the earthly king ordered the mass killing of infant boys around Bethlehem in an attempt to secure his political power against the threat of a foretold newborn King. For women facing
She found out she was pregnant. It wasn’t planned. She was engaged. He was building his trade. What would her family say? Would they be shunned by their community? He wanted to break up with her…put her away because of the shame. But he was encouraged to support her. They had no health care, were
As it was for Mary, most pregnancies are a surprise. And welcome or not, each pregnancy represents the kind providence of the Lord and His intention for the parent to participate in His adorning of history with that new person. To a woman who is alone, unplanned pregnancy can appear hopeless. But from God’s view, there is no such thing as an unplanned pregnancy. And where there is life, there is hope.
What were the times like that first Christmas? Certainly the first public proclamation of Jesus’ birth by the angel to the lowly shepherds was a sign of ‘good news and great joy for all the people’ (Luke 2: 10). It is no coincidence that lowly shepherds were given the honor as the first recipients of
She did not plan on being pregnant. She was not even married. She was frightened. Her fiancé was going to end the relationship. Her community would disparage her and stigmatize the child. Feeling alone she went away, to a place where she would be loved and insulated from the pressure and where she could ponder
