Advent

  The Christian Church calendar places us in the season of Advent, a period of time in which we prepare for the birth of the baby Jesus. It's a joyful time; it's a time of expectancy. We bustle about buying presents and buying decorations. We bake and exchange cookies. We prepare our homes. We sing.
  The birth of every baby is a joyous occasion. The period proceeding the birth should be a time of happy planning and yes, singing. Long ago in Galilee, in a little town called Nazareth, Mary, the mother of Jesus, looked toward the day when she would bear her first child. While there was joy, to be sure, she was not without cause for anxiety. She was not yet married to the babies father! Besides, they had to embark upon an arduous journey by donkey to another town right around her "due date"! In our humanity we might think that God could have made it a little easier for the birth of His Firstborn Son. After all, He was to be called the King of kings and the mighty God!* He was the Messiah (Anointed One)!
  Just as Mary was not without her share of complex issues, if thinking about them on a human level, many young women today have crises which arise from their pregnancies. One thing we all have in common with Mary is that we all have access to a Savior who loves us! He is the One who will redeem us when we turn in repentance to Him and ask for forgiveness when we've gone astray from His desire for our lives. Mary submitted her will to the Father who loves us all. Won't you submit your will to Him today?

*See link to Your Christian World blog for related Bible passages and the Christmas story out of the book of Luke.