Liz’s Morning Devotional: Scripture selected from Upper Room
December 10, 2023
Luke 2:1-7
1 In those days, Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. 2 This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. 3 Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. 4 Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. 5 He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger because there was no place for them in the guestroom.
Good Morning. Happy Lord’s Day!
One thing is certain: pregnancies rarely go as planned. Sometimes, an expectant mom has little challenges, but other times, she has bigger ones. Modern doctors try to apply pure science to determine when the child will be born. None of my children were born on their due dates. These days, it has become fairly common to induce labor on a certain predetermined date. Some babies come before this date, while others take hours or even days to arrive when a forced date is applied.
Regardless of all of this, modern women have many advantages over women of Mary’s time. The very thought of traveling by donkey just before delivering a baby is inconceivable. Yet, by the grace of God, Mary made the trip and gave birth to a healthy baby despite multiple challenges. At this point, I’m sure all Mary wanted to do was get comfortable, but that was not to be. New mothers do whatever the situation dictates when the time comes.
On that night long ago, God was with Mary and Joseph to give them strength and courage as they embarked on this journey to Bethlehem. Likewise, God is with us each step of our journeys: the challenges, the unexpected detours, and the days of smooth sailing.
Gracious God, Thank you for this beautiful gift of life. We face many opportunities and challenges during our lives. Thank you for being with us always. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen
Thought for the day: God meets us in all our life circumstances.
Praise be to God! Pastor Liz
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