Today marks the third Sunday of Advent, and it is the Sunday that focuses on JOY! Joy is a choice! It is not to be confused with happiness. God really isn't nearly as concerned about our happiness as he is about our salvation, our character, our obedience, our Christian attributes. True JOY is found only in knowing Jesus as our Savior - and thereby knowing our ultimate destination when we leave this world. The joy of the Lord is our strength. It is salvation that brings us joy!
I first accepted Jesus as my Savior when I was 8 3/4 years old. My birth mother died when I was 7 1/2 - and my dad remarried 14 months later. My stepmother was the one who got us into church - and that was where I learned about God, and that Jesus loved me sooooo much that he died for my sins so I could be saved and go live with him FOREVER. It was great Good News, and I accepted Jesus very soon after my folks were married. It was in a little wooden white Assembly of God church in Wilder, Idaho. It was the "new" beginning to my story!
One of the choruses we sang as children was named JOY:
Jesus and others and you, what a wonderful way to spell joy
Jesus and others and you. It's good for each girl and each boy
J is for Jesus. He takes first place. O is for Others you meet face to face
Y is for You, and whatever you do, just remember: be glad and spell JOY!
That song was a model for our choices, our attitudes, and our behavior. Others were always to be put before ourselves. It is still great modeling of how we are to be as Christians.
Choose JOY!
The other thing that is really on my mind today is WONDER. There is sooooo much to wonder about in the nativity story. I realized for the first time this year, for instance, that the Bible doesn't actually tell us Mary was a young teen when she gave birth to Jesus. We just know she was a virgin. But somewhere in history it was assumed and credited to be a credible part of the story. I alluded to that formerly. It is okay to speculate - but absolutely essential to pose our ideas as ours, not pass them off as 'what the Bible says', and that leaves us with wondering....
How old was Mary?
How old was Joseph?
What ages were they when their parents arranged for them to one day be betrothed and married?
How old was Joseph when Jesus was born?
When was Jesus actually born? (not likely to have been December because the shepherds were out with their flocks)
Where exactly were the Wise Men from?
And how many were there? (Three men certainly wouldn't have been traveling alone. How big was their entourage?)
Where were Mary, Joseph & Jesus living in Bethlehem when the astrologers from 'the East' finally arrived?
Did it take 2 years to get there - or did Herod just choose baby boys 2 years and younger to slaughter so he could make sure he included a wide enough span of time?
And on and on. Wondering is fine. Defining the results of wonder as fact is not!
I wonder as I wander.....
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