Virgin Birth Archives – Facets of Faith

Welcome to FACETS of Faith. Merry Christmas! I (Tracy) pray you see Christ in meaningful fashion as you read each of our perspectives this month. It’s a sweet season. Slow down. Savor Him. Look for Him with intention. Lord, help Your precious children see You for all You are to them and others. Reveal Yourself in this season where hearts are open in a special, tender way. In Jesus’ name, amen.

When you consider Christ, what do you see?

I see what I need depending upon what season I am in. I’m not talking about Christmas, Easter, winter or spring. I’m referring to my state of mind. Where am I at in life? How am I feeling about that? What are my present needs? Hopes? Hurts? Aspirations?

Do you see what I see?

What I see is who I need Jesus to be in that very moment.

I’m a woman. My needs fluctuate. You too? I can be on top of a mountain and want to twirl with Jesus like Julie Andrews singing, The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music. The hills alive, because I feel alive. Fresh, green, vibrant as the landscape echoing songs of jubilation back to me. You’re alive! Doesn’t if feel fabulous to breathe deep and take it all in? The score dramatic as my life and music create a crescendo, a beautiful chorus where people want to join in. In these moments, I see my need for a Dance Partner to twirl with me.

Not every day is a Julie Andrews kind of day. Sometimes it’s more like Alanas Morissette. I hate the world today. Angsty. Angry. Grrr. You wake up scrubbing sleep from your eyes, realize you are out of coffee, stub your toe on the sharp edges of your coffee table, creating the need to hop out your pain. All the while you think, Maybe I should go back to bed and toss the covers over my head, darkness beneath the blankets matching bleakness of this day. In these moments, I see my need for an Encourager to move me from sulking to singing.

Perhaps the darkness is more serious than a minor toe-stubbing nuisance. A diagnosis that feels gloomy. A marriage in disrepair. A dream dead. Loved ones lost, not knowing a Savior. In times of lament, I see Him as my greatest Comfort, the One I cannot do without.

That’s life, right? Ups AND downs. How do we deal with all that? We don’t get to pluck the good out and leave behind the things we’d rather not have. That’s not how life works, unfortunately. God said, in this life we would have trouble (John 16:33). Sometimes, that’s what we have.

But we also have hope. And we have a Savior. We have salvation for our souls when we say “yes” to Jesus and surrender our lives to Him. We have salvation for each and every day. The hard days when we want to sit in a puddle and fling mud all over ourselves to match our mood. The good days when our hearts are bursting full of joy, and we get to celebrate with the Only One who really knows what it took to get to the top of life’s mountains.

Do you see what I see?

I see a God who sees me and you.

We could try to explain to others every step that stretched us out of our comfort zone as we climbed that mountain. But we don’t need to explain to God. He gets it. Because He gets us. It is glorious that He gets us.

The fact that He gets me, gets me through.

He’s also the first One I want to run to when I’ve got good news. He is my Confidant. I can confide in Him about ANYTHING. He is trustworthy. If you don’t know that, I pray you come to know it. If you do, I pray He gives you fresh revelation of that truth today.

Do you see what I see?

I see a trustworthy God.

Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” Luke 1:42 NKJV

Above are the words Elizabeth spoke to her pregnant cousin Mary─Mary, the one who needed to trust God with her reputation and her future.

I love that Elizabeth didn’t use her inside voice. She proclaimed in a loud voice words to the effect of, Mary, do you realize how blessed you are? You carry the Christ! Who get’s to do that? You are carrying THE Blessing! Can you believe how blessed you are?

Elizabeth saw the blessing before Christ was born. Her attentive eyes of faith saw the beauty Mary carried in her. She saw Christ, our blessing.

Do you see what I see?

I see Christ our blessing. Do you see it too? Do you see Him as a blessing? Do you see that sweet precious baby born to a virgin as a blessing? He is you know. Even if you know Him and you love Him, do you really understand the depth of His blessing as He came through the womb of an innocent, pure, normal-until-that-day young woman?

It makes me wonder what Jesus saw in Mary that He would give her that kind of trust.

Mary faced hard circumstances. Judgement, I’m sure, from people who didn’t understand her situation. It was rather unbelievable, like many things of faith. God isn’t logical, practical, or fully comprehensible. It’s what makes Him God and requires our faith.

Do you see what I see?

I see a God who sees beyond who we are to whom we will become.

God saw a young woman whom He knew with His help would be strong enough to carry Him and care for Him in spite of what others might think. He gave her a close confidant in Joseph. God knew she’d need him to help her fulfill her calling. Angels were sent to Joseph too. He knew what God asked of him as well. Sacrifice. They both sacrificed much so that one day their precious baby boy could become our Sacrifice, the Sacrifice that saved the world —including you and me.

Do you see what I see?

Baby born to save the world through every day people.

Without the courage, trust, and belief of Mary and Joseph, we wouldn’t have our Christ. (Admittedly, God would have used someone else to deliver us. But because they were courageous, He didn’t have to.) What courage, trust, and belief is God calling you to? What won’t the world have if you don’t step into it?

“But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Luke 1:43 NKJV

Do you see what I see?

I see our Lord.

Like Elizabeth, we were given a Lord. He’s ahead of us in this matter. Waiting in the wings for each of us to say yes to Him as Leader of our lives. He wants to be, if we’ll let Him. We get choice. We get to choose Him as Lord (or not).

He’ll meet us on our most difficult days, like He ended up doing for his precious mama the day she looked on and saw her son, the Son, hanging on a cross willing to die for you and me. Before He did so, Jesus made sure His mama would be well-cared for by His closest companion, John, the disciple whom He loved. My friend, John, the one I love. I need you to love my mama. I know you will. I trust you to care for her. You’ve learned from me. Now take care of her. She’s going to need you. And I know you won’t let me down. That is a dark, desperate mama day. Literally, at Jesus’ death the skies turned dark (Mark 15:33). Mary’s Lord made sure she wasn’t left alone.

When Mary sat in Elizabeth’s kitchen (where I visualize her because that’s where good conversation often takes place) and heard these words, I don’t think she could have imagined that dark day.

“For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for these will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” Luke 1:44-45 NKJV

Do you see what I see?

I see blessing born from belief.

Mary was told she would have a child, and He would save the world. He did. And He does. Jesus saves.

John the Baptist leaped in his mother’s womb for joy at the encounter with Christ. The stirring inside Elizabeth revealed to her Mary carried the Savior of the world.

Mary was given the immense privilege to care for the long-awaited Promise. Scripture fulfilled because she said “yes”.

Do you see what I see?

I see Jesus, our source of joy.

When we recognize Jesus, we see our source of all joy. Even a babe in a womb recognized it and leaped. Nothing else can bring joy like Jesus. The world will present all sorts of false narratives about what brings joy: buy me, try me, play me, let me play with you, idolatry.

Make no mistake. Joy to the world comes only through Christ.

When I look at Christ, I see joy. I see Him look upon us, me, with adoration in spite of my messy, muddled up attempts at living life for Him. I imagine His eyes twinkling as He looks upon me. She’s mine. That one with the freckles. She makes me smile. Knowing He delights in me in spite of my sin (not because of it, in spite of it) brings me joy. He loves you in spite of your sin too; I hope you bask in great joy over that truth.

What struck me today as I wondered about what I see when I look at Christ is how He chose to introduce Himself to you and me. A baby. A baby born to a previously unknown, unpretentious, betrothed woman who the town probably thought of as tainted trash, because they couldn’t see the truth. A baby born to a virgin.

Jesus could have chosen any way to come. He chose this one. I believe He really wants us to notice how He came.

Do you see what I see?

I see a Savior who made Himself vulnerable and humble. That’s how He came.

Not a warrior. Not a knight. Not a king the way we’d expect THE King. When I look at Christ as a baby born to brave, young Mary I see Him as vulnerable and humble.

I don’t want to move on from that. I think that’s His main point to this piece.

He came in vulnerability and humility.

He is our model. He is our ultimate Mentor. He wants me and you to live vulnerable and humble too. It’s how people will see Him.

Vulnerability and humility are not in vogue. That’s okay. The things of Christ aren’t necessarily in vogue with society. The Pharisees couldn’t see Christ because He came in such a vulnerable, humble way. They expected some grand entrance, or at least a grand gesture. Can we have a little fan-fare please?

That wasn’t the way of Christ.

He chose a different fashion to reveal Himself to us. He expects us to do life different too.

When I look at Christ today, I see vulnerability and humility and the blueprint on how to live my life for Him. Christmas, Easter, and every seeming insignificant day. Maybe it’s in the seeming insignificant days we reflect Him most.

This Christmas, I pray we respond like Mary when He calls us to Him and His purposes. I pray we see Him and we help others see Him too.

And Mary said,

I’m bursting with God-news;

I’m dancing the song of my Savior God.

God took one good look at me, and look what happened─

I’m the most fortunate woman on earth!

What God has done for me will never be forgotten,

the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others.

His mercy flows in wave after wave

on those who are in awe before him.

He bared his arm and showed his strength,

scattered the bluffing braggarts.

He knocked tyrants off their high horses,

pulled victims out of the mud.

The starving poor sat down to a banquet;

the callous rich were left out in the cold.

He embraced his chosen child, Israel;

he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high.

It’s exactly what he promised,

beginning with Abraham and right up to now.

─Luke 1:46-55 The Message

What do you see this Christmas as you look toward Christ?

Join the conversation here or on our Facebook page.

This month we thought we’d lighten things up a bit. We tend to dive deep. Sometimes, it’s good to come up for air, breathe from the belly, and let out a few laughs. Selfishly, I needed a break from all the sanctification that happens when we tackle the serious topics. This month we chew on some lighter fare. After all this is FACETS and we have multiple facets to our personalities too. Right? Image bearers of Christ have lots of dimension. (No, I didn’t say dementia!)

I’ll be curious what chuckles Kim, Jennifer and our guest contributor bring this month. Oh goodie! A month full of funny. I can handle that!

She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.─Proverbs 31:25 NIV

A friend spoke this verse over me several years back. When she publicly proclaimed its truth over my head, it was fiction, not fact. I hadn’t laughed, really laughed, from a place of exuberant joy and peace in a long, long time. I’m not sure I’d ever felt strength other than the puffed up pretend kind, and dignity would never have been an adjective you’d have assigned to me.

But God’s got jokes! He is the ultimate Author of irony.

Little David, here’s a slingshot, and a few stones. Now take out that giant.
Here you go Joshua. Grab a trumpet and march around the city. Jericho falls. I know it makes no sense. Trust me.
Rahab, tie this red ribbon in your window. You don’t realize it yet, but Christ will be in your lineage. Today this would be a reality show: From Prostitute to Princess.
Gideon, I am going to reduce your numbers. You’ll have less and less help. But what do numbers matter? Haven’t you ever heard less is more? Don’t worry. I’ll bring victory. Quit biting your nails.
Virgin birth (come on now!)
Skunks. They look cute and cuddly. But stumble upon one and you’ll be singing a different tune (as you head to the store for tomato juice, planning on a good scrub in the tub).
A girlie girl who will one day apparently love motorcycle riding. Even better, she’ll be a Bible-loving Biker. That’ll raise a few eyebrows, probably on both sides of the fence.

God’s got jokes! If you would have asked me, even one short year ago if I’d be a motorcycle mama (ha ha) I would have laughed and said, “Not a chance!” But what do I know? Once again, this confirms I don’t know my left from my right (which isn’t such a good thing for a Bible-loving Biker who needs to lean into the curves).

You want to know at least one thing that’s awesome about God’s irony? I get to embrace it and learn a bit more about how He made me. Just when I thought I was figuring me out. Even in that God says, “I know you better!” Of course He does. He designed me. Apparently, He designed me to love awesome shoes, fashion, and the rumble of an engine as I glide along tree covered country roads on two wheels.

He was right! Go figure.

If you think I’m exaggerating about the irony, consider this: Mint green jeans and matching scarf, of course. White riding jacket with coordinating helmet. (I may have started a Pinterest board on how to avoid helmet hair. Maybe. Shhh! Don’t tell anyone.)

Now consider all of the above riding up to a biker rally greeted by a sea of black on black attire. That takes some inner strength! I know who I am. Who cares if they’re judging me for my mint green pants? Okay, so maybe I was a little self-conscious. But then I thought, who cares? I’ll do me, grinning knowingly. Before Christ I would have tried to conform. Now? Me and Jesus will make them curious!

Yesterday, I rode my motorcycle to work for the first time. It was glorious! God has given me a scenic route, literally an official Scenic Drive (thanks God!). I’m surrounded by nature on every side. Since this is one of the most powerful ways I connect with God, my whole ride to work is like worship.

Thank You, God, for this awesome gift I didn’t know I’d love. Thank You for the escape so I feel refreshed and restored, ready to take on each day with You. What a blessing to have such a beautiful ride – and no way for anyone to get ahold of me over the rumble of my engine. Woot Woot! Peace inside my helmet. A voice echoing inside that same helmet a little off key.

How great is our God. Sing with me how great is our God. And all will see how great, how great is our God.

And then a little giggle escaped between me and my God. Isn’t He awesome?

There is one thing more I’m wondering─at least for now. I know there are bikers who are Christian. The ones I know all were bikers first; Christianity came second. Maybe God’s just showing me He made me a little weird (truth — but His word calls it unique), but I wonder what He’s going to do with a Bible-loving woman who became a biker second. When God’s irony shows itself, you better believe we should prepare for more of the unexpected!

I have a feeling I will have some interesting encounters up ahead. It’s okay. We’re trained in motorcycle class to observe the road ahead. It’s more important what’s coming than what’s behind. Yeah, sure, you need to look for the tailgaters following too close for comfort. But the open, winding road ahead is where we need to focus.

Ahead is where adventure awaits.

How has God’s irony surprised you? What unexpected joy did you experience? What adventure awaits you?

Join the conversation here or on our Facebook page.

Do You See What I See?

How Has God Brought Humor and Joy to your Life? (God’s Got Jokes!)