The Nativity

It seems as if each year, the Holy Spirit gives me a newer, sweeter perspective on the nativity. This year I had the privilege to direct the children's Christmas musical at my church in Florence, New Beginning. The musical had three parts: a chorus, a scene set in present time of children learning about Christmas, and a nativity. As the musical went on, we added another part to the nativity. At the end, all the children gathered around baby Jesus and sang a medley of Christmas songs. It was so joyful! Seeing each part slowly added showed me God's sovereignty in His divine plan in sending His son to save us. I have recently been reading from Isaiah 9, the prophecy of Jesus' birth.

"The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them light has shined [. . .]
For to us a child is born,
to us a child is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder;
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
Isaiah 9: 2, 6

I have found those verses to be beautiful. Long before Jesus' birth, the prophets were proclaiming that the Messiah was coming. What hope that brought the people of Israel.

Tonight in the discipleship in which I am a part of, we watched the movie The Nativity Story. It was a wonderful interpretation of the biblical story of Jesus' birth. It was very accurate using the history of the times to tell this story in order for viewers to understand exactly what this story means. Mary was a real person. Joseph was a real person. Mary didn't want to marry Joseph. He was upset but merciful when Mary became with child. It was a hard journey to Bethlehem. Herod let the Messiah slip right under his nose. Jesus truly was a baby! I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and have a newer, sweeter view of the nativity scene we have on our entertainment center in our home. It has a new meaning.

What's interesting is the connection to my dream that I had last night. It was a long dream, one that continues on even after you have woken up and fallen back asleep. The dream began in the middle of a wedding rehearsal. My own. It was an arranged marriage. I didn't know the man I was to marry. After the rehearsal, I broke down to my mother, "Why didn't I have a part in this? Why didn't I have a choice?" I was so confused! However, for whatever reason, I decided to give the man a chance. The wedding was not for another 3 months. During those three months the man and I got to know each other. And, yes, you guessed it, we fell in love. He re-proposed to me the night before our originally scheduled wedding. The parallel to the story of Mary and Joseph is uncanny. Both marriages were arranged. Mary and I did not want to marry our betrothed. We both gave our men a chance. We fell in love during our engagement. I learned from this dream and its connection to the story of Mary and Joseph about God's divine plan. We may not understand at first, but He knows what He is doing. One day, we'll understand.

In Christ,
Christine