Christmas is supposed to be the Most Wonderful Time Of The Year. But sometimes, it can be the most stressful time of the year, or the most lonely time of the year.
If that’s you, you’re feeling like people felt over 2000 years ago. When those angels started speaking to Mary and Joseph, it broke the 400 years of silence from God. For 400 years, God didn’t speak to His people. God’s people were waiting for the Messiah that God had promised them to come and save them. They waited and they prayed and cried out to God to make them into a great nation like He promised, But God didn’t answer them. For 400 years, There were no prophets, There were no signs. There was only silence. They wondered, “Why do I feel so alone?” But then God showed up and spoke up loud and clear!
Luke 1:26-29 “God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
Mary looked at her life and thought, “There’s nothing about me that makes me ‘highly favored.’”
Luke 1:30: “But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.
God doesn’t see you the way you see you. You may think there’s nothing special about you, but you’re wrong!
Luke 1:31-33 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.“
Luke 1:34 How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God…“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.“
What made Mary special was her obedient, trusting heart.
Matthew 1:18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph lost his sense of wonder when he found out Mary was pregnant.
Matthew 1:19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.”
Joseph trusted God like Mary did.
The Shepherds also trusted what God said through the angels when they appeared and told them the Messiah had been born. They trusted God so much that they left their sheep and ran to the manger to see Jesus.
The Wise Men trusted in the star that God sent that led them to Bethlehem.
Because they all chose to trust God, their lives were changed.
If you’re not feeling the wonder of Christmas, chances are, you’re not fully trusting God in some area of your life. When your trust is in God, there is hope.
The good news is, you don’t have to wonder anymore!
We know that He stepped down from Heaven and came to live among us. We know that when we place our trust in Him, He lives inside of us.
We don’t have to wonder where He is, because He is in control. And when He is in control, it’s a “Wonder”-full thing.
Eternity is too important, too long of a time to just wonder if you’re going to be there or not. You can know for sure when you trust in Jesus.
When you’re accepted by God, It’s always the Most Wonder-ful Time Of The Year.