Luke 2 -- Marvelling and Treasuring

I was noticing the things that Mary treasured in her heart.  She’d been obedient when told of her role in bringing Jesus into the world.  Now that He’d been incarnated, she marveled at the stories told by the shepherds:  angels had appeared, not to the religious leaders in Jerusalem, but to those who, because of their work, were likely never ritually clean!  And because they’d obeyed, they’d been given the first glimpse of the Savior of the world, while the High Priest, the other priests, and the Levites had slept through it!

Later, in simply doing what was required by the Law by presenting Jesus in the Temple and offering the required sacrifice to buy back a firstborn male child, both parents marveled at the comments of Simeon and Anna, who both independently confirmed their heavenly messages that Jesus was the Savior.  Simeon declared that he could not die in peace because he had seen God’s salvation in the body of the baby Jesus!  That’s all he wanted out of the remainder of his life – to see Jesus!  And how it should be our only desire, too!  Yet too many times we become so caught up in the world that we miss the Savior!

Father, I want to keep treasuring what You’ve shown me about Jesus in my heart.  Don’t let me ever think of Him as ordinary.  Help me to have the single-mindedness of Anna regarding Your kingdom and not the dry religion of all the rest who missed the Savior.  And help me to show others what You’ve shown me.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford