Mary Treasured Up All These Things

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

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, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Luke 2:15-20

A Stable! What a place to give birth to the Messiah! The smells and sounds of a barnyard were our Savior’s first human experience. Like other babies, He may even have cried at the sounds of the animals and the strangers parading around His temporary crib.

Jesus would come to know human loss and sorrow, the doubts of his brothers and family had about Him, and the pain His mother experienced as she saw Him tortured and killed.

All these hardships – and so much more – awaited the baby trying to sleep that first night.

May the Light that entered the world that night cast its brilliance into the deepest corners of our souls this Christmas, giving us the peace on earth of which the angels spoke so long ago.

Jesus understands.

Our Daily Bread – December 25, 2014