The Journey is ended...and Begun.

Day 18: Jerusalem. Crowded, filled with Roman soldiers. Arrival at the home of Mary's first cousin, Elizabeth, and her husband the priest Zacharias, whose six-month-old baby will be known as John the Baptist. The two couples meet in awe. They are the only people in the world who know the world's most tremendous news, and yet they can say nothing.

Day 19: Joseph busies himself about Jerusalem securing exit visas. He gawks at the paved streets, the covered shops, the Roman barracks, at the five great palaces and the huge Roman fortress named for Mark Antony--and especially at the great Temple, its eaves and pinnacles sheathed in pure gold. Mary is puzzled--and not for the first time--by the ways of God. Her time is near. Would it not be fitting that her holy Baby be born in that holy temple? But at dawn they must leave...

Day 20: Late this day the weary couple pass through the walls of Bethlehem, a center for sheep and cattle farming, know for the sweet water of its wells, its synagogue, for King David's house and land.
Joseph is alarmed. Mary's birthing pains have begun. But first he rushes to register with the Romans before it is too late. Then he seeks lodging. But the town is swarming with other members of David's tribe and nothing is available. Frantically, they leave the town and find shelter in one of the caves that shepherds use for stables. There are hayracks and mangers there, and a warming fire.
On this night, Mary's Child, the Son of God, is born. The journey is ended...and begun.

"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."'

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.'

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.'"

Continuing on the Road

Day 10: Halfway. The Samarian city of Shomrom-Sebaste, ancient walled capital of Israel, yet to Joseph a desecrated city, its buildings more Greek than Jewish, and filled with foreigners who do not believe in God. Three days here outside the walls. Joseph is anxious to push on but this is a trading center and the caravan merchants are too busy to leave.
Ten miles southwest is Shechem, noted for the wealth and arrogance of its citizens who are not Jews, but Samaritans. Mary yearns, as do all Jews for a cup of curative water from Jacob's Well, but it is forbidden territory and leaving the caravan might mean being killed by the Samaritans. At Jacob's Well Jesus will meet a Samaritan woman and promise her eternal life.

Day 14: The Sabbath observed. No traveling. Mary needs the rest. Joseph is worried for her.

Day 15: Joseph and Mary travel around the new city of Shiloh, and mourn for the old Shiloh, a sad and lonely vista of broken-down buildings and shattered alters. Once it possessed the now-lost Ark of the Covenant, the revered sign of God's presence.

Day 16: Bethel. As devout Jews, Joseph and Mary pause for special prayers where Abraham offered his sacrifices to God, and Jacob dreamed of angels climbing up and down a ladder to heaven.

Day 17: The small wayside station of Ramallah. Here, at last, the first glimpse of the holy city of Jerusalem, its golden pinnacles glittering in the sun, 10 miles distant.

New Perspective for the Season

The Way to the First Christmas
by: Malachi Martin

"And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Casear Augustus that all the world should be taxed..."

It is a matter of great urgency. As members of the tribe of Judah, Joseph and his wife Mary must register for the census in Bethlehem, their own ancestral city of David. The Romans, who occupy Palestine, are strict. Anyone not appearing at the appointed time will risk being branded an outlaw, fined, executed.

And there is the other reason. Mary is heavy with Child. The quickest way south must be chosen, not the easier plains of the Mediterranean or the more leisurely Jordan Valley, but the 3000-year-old trading route that winds for 70 miles through the rocky highlands.

Joseph purchases a place in a caravan passing through from Mesopotamia. It will provide protection from bandits, bears, mountain lions...

Day 1: The long, cumbersome caravan leaves Nazareth in a welter of dust and yapping dogs, the rich in their chariots and wagons, the poor on donkeys and foot. As they descend from the high Galilean hills, Mary observes Mount Tabor in the east. She cannot know it now, but one day it will be the site of the Transfiguration of the Child she carries.

Day 2: The lovely plain of Jezreel, Palestine's granary. Green forests, fresh water, carpets of wildflowers. Mary misses home. And sleeping on the ground beside the trail is not easy for her.

Day 5: Mile after plodding mile, the days go by. In the caravan they talk about Megiddo, 10 miles west, where Solomon kept his stables for 900 chariots and horses.

Day 6: The caravan clmbs into the mountains. In the village of Nain, famed for its flowers and clmate, Jesus will restore a widow's son to life.
Day 7: The Sabbath observed. No traveling this day.

Day 8: Climbing still. Slow going, yet Joseph and Mary are excited by being for the first time in the places they've learned about in the synagogue. There's Mount Gilboa! Where Saul and Jonathan were slain by the Philistines and David lamented the loss of his beloved friend.

Mind Games

This morning as I sat in my favorite chair, gazing at the shimmering Christmas lights on our tree, and sipping my quickly-cooling-to-lukewarm coffee...I realized how much negativity I allow inside my head.

I assume the worst about situations, people and myself. I don't anticipate I will have good day...it's "enduring" through life. Sometimes I even feel guilty for enjoying life or having a happy day. How ridiculous! Why live under such a burden?

"The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord, and he delights in His way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One who holds his hand."

"Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God."

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."

"Finally brethern, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy or praise, dwell on these things."

With these truths in mind... I decided it was time for a change. Holding His hand, I will...

-choose to think the best of people.
-choose to only allow pleasing, honoring thoughts to enter my mind and heart.
-have a good day today!

Along the same lines, I recently read an article concerning the power of words. Here are some excerpts (Click on the title to be directed to the full article online) :

Vocabulary of Grace
by Rachel Starr Thomson

“As a writer, I deal with the power of words every day. Words damage or heal; impart grace or condemn. On a deep level, they alter the way we see life and respond to challenges. They create safe places or dangerous ones…. Of everything in life we tend to be most careless with our words, yet they are powerful and worthy of care.

Language of Faith
"When I was 13 or so, my dad put the kibosh on a word we'd been using for years: "lucky." Why remove something so common from our language? "Because," he said, "we don't believe in luck." Awkward though it sounded to us at the time, we were instructed to use the word "blessed" instead. … This simple switch in vocabulary triggered a profound difference in attitude. … Luck, after all, is arbitrary. Blessing comes from the deliberate hand of a good God.

" … So often though, our speech ignores reality and refuses to give God His due. When our speech reflects truth, truth will sink deeper into our hearts — and perhaps give others something to think about as well.

Speaking Honor
"We live in a culture of irreverence. In the name of making people laugh, we make a mockery of everything. … Few things are dishonored more in our culture than marriage and family. This is true among Christians as much as anywhere else. Engagement is met with crude jokes and comments about life being over. ... We claim to believe what God says about marriage and family, yet our speech patterns are just as likely to reflect feminism, humanism, and hedonistic values.

"… We have the opportunity to use words that reflect what we really believe, that strengthen our highest ideals and give glory to God. Why not take it? … We can probably all think of a time when someone's unexpected words lifted us up and gave us the strength to keep going. Ultimately, the words we speak are gifts — to those around us and to God, who always hears."