Read Exodus 18, Job 36, and Luke 2.
This devotional is about Luke 2.
Joseph and Mary each received a dramatic, miraculous announcement about the conception of Jesus. After he was born, angels celebrated his birth, then shepherds and wise men showing up out of nowhere to see him. When they took him to the temple for the rite of circumcision, two people appeared to thank God for Jesus and prophesy about him. Although Luke did not record it, Matthew told us that Joseph and Mary received divine guidance to protect Jesus from the murderous intentions of Herod the Great.
So their family life started off very dramatically, to say the least. God was working through them and for them like he never had before for anyone. No wonder “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (v. 19) and “his mother treasured all these things in her heart” (v. 51).
Those statements about Mary were not at all the point of Luke 2, of course. The point of this chapter is to record the birth of Jesus and all the signs that affirmed God’s plan and God’s word about him.
But these two statements about Mary cast light on an important side truth: remember to remember God’s work in your life. Walking by faith is often difficult.
Mary and Joseph experienced the difficulty of living by faith in the past when people whispered about her pregnancy. Simeon prophesied that the days ahead would be painful, too, when he told Mary, “a sword will pierce your own soul too” in verse 35.
One thing that gets us through the hard days in our walk with God is remembering God’s work in the past. God’s work does not–will not–be miraculous and dramatic for you like it was for Joseph and Mary. But God’s answers to prayer, his leading in your life through providence, the encouragement of other believers just at the right time are just a few examples of God’s work in your life. Treasure them up in your heart as Mary did! Remember them and tell your kids and your friends about them. They will help you keep walking by faith in the dark days of the Christian life.
