Mary...what DID you know?

This morning as I listened to Christmas music gently filling the rooms of this old farm house, my baby boy wiggling excitedly on his blanket in front of the fireplace, this song came across the stereo.

Mary Did You Know

Mary did you know that your baby boy will one day walk on water?
Mary did you know that your baby boy will save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?
This child that you've delivered, will soon deliver you.

Mary did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm a storm with his hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
And when you kiss your little baby, you have kissed the face of God.

The blind will see, the deaf will hear and the dead will live again.
The lame will leap, the dumb will speak, the praises of the lamb.

Mary did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary did you know that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
This sleeping child you're holding is the great I am.
I got to wondering; Mary...just what did you know? What was it really like?

Having given birth to my first son in this last year, my mind began tumbling end over end with questions.

What was it really like to be a young woman, a virgin, having never touched a man, yet carrying a growing life within? What fears followed you along this journey? In the quiet of the night, what questions plagued your mind? Or was the Holy Spirit so thoroughly resting with you that you knew nothing but peace? Having experienced the extreme discomfort of those last weeks of pregnancy, how on earth did you handle riding on the back of a donkey for so many miles? I had all the comforts of a hospital bed (ok you snickering ladies that are thinking that hospital beds are NOT comfortable...) I had a full medical team at my fingertips, the room was warm and full of light, fresh and clean. I cannot even begin to fathom what it would be like to lie on a bed of straw on a cold dirt floor, the only medical team present chewing their cud, and the room full of manure...far from that crisp, fresh cleanliness that I experienced. My husband was by my side, he was my support and I never could have gone through birth without him. But he was simply my support, my love, my strength...he didn't have to deliver our baby. What was it like for you, to not only have Joseph supporting you and giving you his strength, but also putting on the catcher's mit and guiding your son to his first breath? I felt God's presence with me with each breath I took throughout the labor of my son; what was it like for you? Could you feel God watching the birth of His son? Did He whisper encouragement into your ear? Was He there cradeling you in His arms, wiping the sweat from your brow? Just how aware were you of the enormity of the miracle that you were a part of?

My questions could go on and on. Mary, your story has never captured my heart or felt so real to me as it does this Christmas. What a blessed role you played, to be the mother of our Savior. How I would love to sit and chat over a cup of coffee, from one mother to another, to share the secrets that only mothers understand.

I find myself examining my own heart, wondering if I am capable of being as humble as Mary, to set aside my own agendas, my own plans and dreams and allow God to have full control of my life. Do I trust Him enough...?

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Luke 1:38

My prayer for this Christmas is that I follow in Mary's footsteps of humility, bowing before my Lord with these words, redardless of what is ahead of me, that I might also be able to say "May it be to me as you have said."

Merry Christmas everyone!