"Mary, Did You Know?" written by Mark Lowry & Buddy Greene
Mary, did you know
That your baby boy will one day walk on water?
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?
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've kissed the face of God
Mary, did you know?
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?
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 feel as if I have heard the song for the first time ever. Any time I've ever thought about the Christmas story, and Mary in particular, I've always thought about her from the eyes of the young girl that is suddenly pregnant. I've wondered how I would have handled the situation. I've wondered if I would have been ashamed of my condition, even though I was told and believed that it was caused by God himself. I've wondered if my Joseph would have been as faithful to me even as I pleaded innocence. I've wondered how my parents would have reacted. Being as I didn't have my first child until I was 31 - the thought of being pregnant and having one at half that age gives me shivers. Not to mention the lack of drugs...epidural in particular. If it wasn't for my epidural in both deliveries, I don't think I could have done it. And there Mary was...in a dirty, stinky stable, surrounded by dirty, stinky animals...giving birth to a child with no epidural...no clean water...no proper blankets or towels to wash the precious child in once He was born. I can only imagine how scared she must have been...how confused...how utterly alone she must have felt at that moment with her husband at her side.
After hearing the song the other day, my perspective on the birth of Jesus was changed slightly. The whole time Mary was pregnant - she knew that her Savior, her Lord, her Deliverer was in her belly. Remember the guilt you had when you pushed your body farther than it should have been pushed or when you had that sip of wine or eaten that mercury laden fish when you were pregnant with your children...the fear that your child would come out of you with not enough fingers...or blind... Just the fear as a mother I had that my children would be completely "normal" and healthy and happy was enough to keep me from sleep at night sometimes. But - here was Mary - pregnant with THE most important child in the world - with no proper medical care (at least how today's society views it)...can you even begin to imagine the fear that could have overwhelmed her. However - she was pregnant with God...and I can only hope that the fear was lessened knowing that her pregnancy had the ultimate Purpose.
Now...those days where I feel like all I do is scream at my kids...those days where just walking out the door with all of us dressed is challenging...those days that I feel like I've lost any semblance of who I used to be is gone...would I feel the same if I knew that the child was my Lord and Savior? Would I be just as impatient with Him? Would I be just as short tempered? I wish the Bible let us in on how Jesus was as a toddler...I know that He was perfect in every way and never sinned...but did He ever test Mary's patience? Did Mary struggle with potty training Him??? Did she have to tell Him no a million times? Did she have to keep pulling him down from the cabinets that he was climbing? As much as I'd love to believe that the answer is no...it has to have been yes. So...how do you discipline the World's Redeemer?
I know that I have no idea right now what my children will be when they grow up. Kendall talks about being a pediatrician, or a veterinarian, or an astronaut, or a scuba diver...or a ballerina or a princess or a mermaid. Carson doesn't say much yet about what he wants to be (he doesn't say much yet, period). Jeff and I have told Kendall and Carson that we just want them to be happy. We just want them to find whatever it is that gives them passion and makes them happy and proud of what they do. Would we feel different if we knew without a doubt say, that Kendall was going to grow up to be something that we disagree with - but that made her happy? Would we try her entire life to discourage her from that line of work? What if we knew without a doubt that she was going to become the doctor that discovers the cure for cancer, but that she wouldn't really love her job or have any passion for it? What is more important at that point? Her happiness and passion or the cure of millions of people that are ill? I think that in some ways - we are lucky for not knowing what the kids will grow up to be. Although Mary didn't know Jesus' fate (being crucified at 35 years old), she knew that he was the Lord of all the earth. She knew that, if nothing else, He would make a huge impact on the world. If she had known that He would be crucified...would she have tried to discourage Him from being the teacher He was? Or knowing that His love would save the world, including her own, would she have still sent Him to His death?
Then - there is the question of how much she must have loved Him. I know that I love my children dearly...madly. Can you even begin to imagine how much Mary must have loved her Son? Yes - she loved Him as His mother - with the same passion and vigor that I love my own children. But her love went so much deeper...she loved Him as you and I love God - as one of His children. So even if it is possible to love your child more...which I can't begin to imagine...she did. She loved Jesus not only as His mother but as His daughter! Whoa!!!! My head starts to spin just thinking about it...
As I've been thinking about the song and the Christmas story over the last several days - here is the conclusion I've come up with. Our children are precious gifts from God, and no matter what their future holds in store for them, or what they are going to grow up to be - I need to love them...completely...without any reservation...and remembering every single day of their life that how I treat them and how I talk to them and how I show them love will impact who they will eventually be as adults.
No matter what Mary did or did not actually know about Jesus when He was born - she knew that she loved Him. She showed Him love, she spoke to Him in love, she held Him in love, she completely showered Him with love. And now...He does the same for us. He shows us love, He speaks to us in love, He holds us in love, He completely showers us in love.
Merry Christmas!
