Mary, did you know?

Dear Timothy,

I started reading through Luke during Advent. I didn't make it all that far and Christmas has come and gone. But that doesn't mean I haven't learned a thing or two. I believe that if you willingly and earnestly engage in God's word, however irregularly, He is faithful and gives you insight.

I want to tell you a bit of what I learned from Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Mary is a Jew who has, up until this point, a pretty good - albeit poor - life. She's betrothed to Joseph. This means she's going to marry him at some point in the future. And this, along with having children, basically ensures that she will have a decent life.

When an angel visits Mary and tells her that she will become pregnant with the Son of God, even though she is a virgin, here is her response:

“I am the Lord’s servant ... May your word to me be fulfilled.” Luke 1:38

These words are heavy with meaning, and in a sense she is basically throwing her life away. Let me give you a bit of context.

Mary is a Jew who lives in a society with a lot of very strict laws. A good number of them surround sexual activity, but the ones we are most concerned with here involve who a person can have sex with. There's only one correct answer: their spouse. Mary and Joseph are not yet married, so Mary is a virgin and expected to stay that way until their wedding night. And according to the laws of nature, there is only one way a woman can get pregnant. So when her family and friends find out that she's pregnant, they'll come to one of two conclusions: either 1) Mary and Joseph have slept together, or 2) Mary has been unfaithful to Joseph and slept with someone else. I mean, up until that point, no one had ever even heard of a virgin getting pregnant. A married woman way past childbearing years suddenly finding herself pregnant had happened before (see the story of Abraham and Sarah). But someone who had never even been with a man? Nope. No precedent for that. Therefore, when her community discovers that Mary is pregnant, everyone will think she is lying to save herself.

And boy, will she need saving. A woman who finds herself pregnant out of wedlock in Jewish society at that time will be, at the very least, shunned and excommunicated by her family and friends, and, at the very worst, she faces death by stoning.

But here's what is interesting. Knowing full well what will most likely happen, and even before she learns that Joseph will stand by her, Mary utters the phrase mentioned above: "May your word to me be fulfilled." In other words, "I accept what you tell me; I'll get pregnant and bear God's child. No doubt it will be hard, but I'll do it anyway."

There's really only one logical explanation for Mary's acceptance of the angel's words: her faith in God is so strong that she accepts what she is told, regardless of the consequences she will undoubtedly face.

The really neat thing is that God doesn't leave Mary all alone. After an angel visits him, Joseph decides to marry Mary after all. Also, if you look closely at the words the angel uses when talking with Mary, you'll notice that he mentions her cousin Elizabeth is pregnant in her old age (see Luke 1:36). Here's an older relative who is also experiencing a miraculous pregnancy. So almost as soon as the angel disappears, Mary hightails it over to Elizabeth's and this is where she spends the first few months of her pregnancy. Here, Mary's story is believed. Here, she is cared for, she is appreciated and loved on. And here, Mary's faith is affirmed. In fact, Mary's faith is so strong that she composes her own song praising God while visiting her cousin (see Luke 1:46-55).

I find the timing of Mary's visit with Elizabeth interesting. It's as if she realizes that she's about to face all kinds of problems and needs to prepare herself for it, so she spends time with someone who is experiencing a similar miracle and who will believe her unbelievable story. And consider this, too: Mary arrives at Elizabeth's when the latter is 6 months pregnant. She stays for 3 months, which means she is most likely there when Elizabeth gives birth. It's already impressive that a woman past childbearing years gives birth, but the story around Elizabeth's pregnancy and delivery has some other miraculous twists, including yet another angel's visit (see Luke 1). Mary probably sees it all.

Can you imagine what a faith booster that is for Mary? When she gets back to her own family and friends, life will become very difficult. But at least she'll have what she experienced and saw while at her cousin's to remind her of God's faithfulness and power.

Bear with me as I mention the obvious here: Mary's faithful following of God's leading results in the birth and raising of an incredible boy into a man who makes a resounding, positive impact, not only on the society around him, but on the world as a whole.

And that's putting it mildly.

So here's what I want you to understand from this, Timothy: faith sometimes means going against what others say or believe. It means following God, regardless of the consequences. And believe me, there will be consequences. And, like Mary, you may not see the results of your steps of faith. This is why it's important to find people who will support and believe in you in the tough times. Because it's those people who will have your back and remind you of God's faithfulness.

I share this with you, because I need to remember this, too.

Maybe some day, we can remind each other of this truth.

Love,

Mama.

A baby in a manger

Dear Timothy,

I often end up reflecting on your arrival into this world.  It was an intense, painful and scary time, but we all came through it. We had lots of people helping us through this time - sometimes too many - and as a result, though you and I were battered and bruised, we slowly healed.

But today I want to think about another birth, one that took place almost 2000 years ago. One whose arrival was marked with joy in the heavens, as angels sang to shepherds in the field and a star shone in the sky for astronomers in a far away land. 

But here on earth, things were very different. When you were born, Timothy, you were surrounded by at least 3 obstetricians, a pediatrics team, a few nurses, an anesthesiologist, a doctor, AND your papa. I was drugged up so I couldn't feel much pain. Everyone wore gloves, masks, gowns and hairnets. The room we were in was ridiculously clean and well-lit. 

As for that birth 2000 years ago, Here's what Scripture tells us about it:

While [Mary and Joseph] were [in Bethlehem], the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. (Luke 2:6-7).

That's it. Nothing more is said. But there's so much that isn't said, and it is so telling!

Mary and Joseph placed their little newborn, not in a clean bassinet with fresh sheets, but in a manger. I don't know if you see the similarity between the noun "manger" and the French verb, well, "manger" (same word, different pronunciation. Moving on). In French, "manger" means "to eat". In English, a manger was a container of sorts that held food for animals. We would probably call it a trough today. This reference to a manger, combined with the fact that there was no guest room available for them, tells us that Mary and Joseph were housed with the animals. 

There were no drugs, no medical specialists, and no lights. No comfy bed. No clean linens. There were probably flies, fleas and who knows what other kinds of insects? No doubt there was animal poop - and straw - everywhere. 

And there were no family members.

I'll say this: giving birth is messy. Very messy. It's filled with all kinds of bodily fluids. And it is painful. And sometimes, there are complications. 

We know there were midwives in Bible times; the story of Moses' birth says as much (See Exodus 1:15). So there were some specially trained people who could help women give birth.

But not one midwife was present when Mary went into labour. And her husband, Joseph, was a carpenter by trade, which, in case you were wondering, does nothing to prepare him to bring new life into this world.

And after the birth? No one helped Mary's child to latch. No one was there to make sure she was healing properly. No one helped her go to the washroom and clean up, and tell her that what she was feeling and experiencing was normal. No one was there to take the child and bathe him. No one was there to hold the child to give the new parents a break from the crying baby.

And yet, and yet. The baby that was born that night was Jesus Christ, the son of God. He entered the world in the most humble way possible: as a baby, to the poorest of the poor, under the worst of circumstances.

He could have chosen to be born in Herod's palace, or as Caesar's child. Or even as the son of a Jewish priest. Surely Jesus could have affected the world in greater ways by being the son of a much more powerful person, couldn't He?

He could have, yes. After all, He is God. But He didn’t.

See that’s not at all how God operates. If you read the Bible closely, you will see that He always starts small, humbly, and works His way from there.

The first man was made from the dust on the ground.

Abraham and his wife were beyond the years where they could conceive a child, yet it was through them that God created His chosen people.

Moses was not a great public speaker, yet, with God’s help, he triumphantly led the enslaved Israelites out of Egypt.

Joshua was told he and the Israelites were to around the city of Jericho for 7 days, after which the walls came crashing down.

God chose Gideon, the least of his tribe, to lead the fight against the Midianites with an army that was a fraction of the size of that of their enemy. And the weapons of choice? Their voices, torches and clay pots.

Jesus was born to a virgin teenager who was almost abandoned by her betrothed and likely rejected by both her family and his. This is probably why Jesus ended up in a manger. Jesus lived a short yet surprisingly impactful life, and then died a tortuous death in the most vile way imaginable.

But oh, the ripple effects of that life and death extended far, far beyond the world Jesus lived in!

In church this morning, we were reminded that God didn't choose to make things good in the world and then come down. Rather, He came down and made things good. And not in the ways anyone expected, either.

Timothy, I enjoy your wide-eyed innocence and chill personality. I'm very proud and awed at how you face many new things with a curiosity and/or a huge smile. Right now, the only things that you really don't like are the vacuum cleaner, bathroom hand dryers and the aspirator (which we affectionately call the snot sucker). I hope and pray that this innocence and laid-back-ness is something you can hold on to for a very, very long time. However, I know that you will soon discover that there are so many terrible, horrible, no good, very bad things in this world, and that new awareness could very well throw you for a bit of a loop.

But hopefully your papa and I can teach you to see the good among the bad. May we three learn together to look on the bright side of life, to see the good things that God is giving or doing for us in the midst of all the not-so-good things in this world. 

After all, that's what Mary, the mother of Jesus, did. And I'm convinced that that's what got her through her terrible, horrible, no good, very bad situation.

But that, my love, is a letter for another day; this one is long enough.

Till next time,

Mama.

Your namesake

Dearest Timothy,

I feel as though I'm constantly coming up with ideas to blog about ... and they disappear just as quickly. I'm trying really hard to hold on to them, but baby brain - which hit while I was pregnant with you - has morphed into mama brain, so I keep forgetting things. And that doesn't seem to be going away any time soon.

*Le sigh*.

Anyway, at the moment I've got one idea I'm clear on, so I'm going to run with it. In an earlier post, I mentioned that you were named after the Timothy that we read about in the Bible. I wanted to learn a bit more about him, so I started doing some reading in the book of Acts, to see where Timothy comes into the picture.

Timothy was from a town called Lystra. In case you are wondering, this town no longer exists - you won't find it on a modern-day map - but it was located somewhere in Turkey. Paul had visited Lystra several times in his travels, so the two probably met on one of Paul's first trips to Timothy's hometown. During one of his later visits there, Paul decides to invite Timothy, who is probably a teenager at the time, to accompany him on his missionary journeys.

And Timothy agrees to go. But why, you ask? Great question. We don't have much to go on in Scripture, but I think Paul gives us a clue. In 2 Timothy 2:5, Paul says that Timothy has "sincere faith." At first glance, the idea of having a sincere faith doesn't sound like much, but think of it this way: Timothy gives up a home with family and friends and a comfortable life to follow Paul into uncomfortable - and sometimes dangerous - places. And he's only a teenager, a life stage where, at the very least, friends and creature comforts are normally priority. Timothy really has to buy in to what Paul is teaching in order to join him, because life is about to get quite challenging. Incredibly awesome, but incredibly difficult at the same time.

At the beginning of his travels with Paul, Timothy hears of visions, sees amazing conversions and is present at the establishment of a church in Philippi. At this time, Paul also exorcises a fortune-telling slave girl, an action that annoys her owners so much that both he and his co-worker Silas land in jail.  This is followed by a miraculous and dramatic jailbreak that involves an earthquake, doors and shackles opening on their own, and the dramatic conversion of a previously suicidal jailer - as well as his family - in the middle of the night. Timothy is there when this all happens. And that's only in Acts chapter 16!

Timothy is there when Paul reasons with non-believers. He is there when Paul teaches in various places and when he encourages believers. He is there when Paul and his companions need to be snuck out of various cities for their own safety. And Timothy is also there when people outright reject what Paul has to say.

Like I said, the lives that Paul and his companions led were both incredibly awesome, but also incredibly difficult. Yet, Timothy believed that living this kind of awesome and difficult life was worth it. He believed it enough to say the initial "Yes." to Paul's invitation to come, and he kept on believing. How do I know? The two Timothy books in the Bible are actually letters written by Paul to teach Timothy how a church should be run. Paul left Timothy in Ephasus to lead the church there. Does that sound like a (young) man who thought that the cost of following Jesus was too steep? I think not. Sincere faith indeed.

Timothy, when I say your namesake was pretty incredible, I say that knowing very little about him, other than some of the things he witnessed and did. And, of course, the faith that he had. As I've mentioned before, we named you after him because your dad's name is Paul and he always wanted a son named Timothy. None of these other facts about the first Timothy were known when we chose your name, so we're not expecting you to emulate him by dropping everything and following your papa around everywhere and then some day starting up a church of your own. But I do hope and pray that, like Timothy, your faith will be sincere. It will be your faith because you want it to be yours, not because your papa and myself want you to have it. And that you'll go, not where we want you to go, but where God wants you to go.

I love you.

Mama

Timothy

Dear Timothy

Have you ever wondered where your name came from?

The story is quite simple: your dad's name is Paul, and he's always wanted a son named "Timothy". And here you are.

What's the connection between the two names? Glad you asked. Let's have a look at the Bible, shall we?

There are two books in the New Testament named Timothy. The first is 1 Timothy, and the second is 2 Timothy. Logical, right? The two books are actually letters addressed to a Timothy who lived long, long ago, and was a co-worker of a man named Paul. Paul was quite a bit older than Timothy, and he often referred to Timothy as "my son". That's how close they were. I would say your father has hopes that you and him can also have a close relationship when you're older.

You should also know that your father prays for you a lot, and that he wants you to become a man who loves and follows Jesus wholeheartedly. He loves you a lot, Timothy. He loves to spend time with you doing all kinds of things, and gets so much joy from your existence; your smiles, your laughs, and the wonder you show as you learn new things.  He works hard to provide for you and me as well, so he doesn't get to spend as much time with you as I do. But he still loves you so much.

Paul and Timothy were both Christians, and they worked as missionaries in what is today Asia and parts of Europe. They traveled around to various cities, telling the people they met about Jesus. After travelling around with Paul for a while - and while he was still quite young - Timothy was put in charge of a church. Paul wasn't with him at that time, but he wrote to Timothy to give him advice on how to run the church, hence the letters we find in the Bible. 

One thing that Paul mentions in the Bible is the role Timothy's mother and grandmother played when it came to instilling faith in Timothy when he was a child. You are definitely blessed to have not one, but TWO grandmothers of faith AND a grandfather who can teach you all about what it means to believe in Jesus, and who have been praying for you since long before you were born. And then there's me, your mama. I'm already trying hard to model a life of faith for you. You've seen and heard me pray, though you might not have fully understood what was going on. Bible reading is tough at this stage, and I'm far from a perfect mama, but I am a work in progress, and God still has enough grace and love for me, despite everything.

We'll talk a bit more about who the biblical Timothy was in another blog post. Till then, I will always be

Your Mama.