Your Nativity Story
"... and [Mary] gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2:7
This past Sunday, Pastor Gene talked about "the nativity story" and "The Nativity Story." He mentioned that the word "nativity" means "birth."
All of us have a "nativity story" to tell. We all know, at the very least, where we were born. We probably know how old our parents were and whether or not they were married. We may have other information--whether it was an easy or difficult pregnancy, how many hours of labor we put our mothers through, or how much we weighed and how tall we were when we were born. Lots of us have baby books that chronicle our birth down to the smallest detail.
A birth is monumental--so monumental that it is almost always documented in some way, either by creating an "oral tradition" or a written record or both. When it comes to a new baby, most parents are like Mary, who "treasured up" all the details of her son's birth "and pondered them in her heart" (Luke 2:19).
I would encourage you to reflect on your "nativity story." What have you been told about your birth? Do you have a baby book? If so, pull it out and look through it. If you have baby books for your children, look through them together. Tell them their "nativity story."
For some, this may be painful. Some have stories of being unwanted, of being one too many, of being born too late. If this is part of your story, please know that God wants you. God cannot have too many children. With God, who is eternal, there is no such thing as too late.
--Leslie Porter
This past Sunday, Pastor Gene talked about "the nativity story" and "The Nativity Story." He mentioned that the word "nativity" means "birth."
All of us have a "nativity story" to tell. We all know, at the very least, where we were born. We probably know how old our parents were and whether or not they were married. We may have other information--whether it was an easy or difficult pregnancy, how many hours of labor we put our mothers through, or how much we weighed and how tall we were when we were born. Lots of us have baby books that chronicle our birth down to the smallest detail.
A birth is monumental--so monumental that it is almost always documented in some way, either by creating an "oral tradition" or a written record or both. When it comes to a new baby, most parents are like Mary, who "treasured up" all the details of her son's birth "and pondered them in her heart" (Luke 2:19).
I would encourage you to reflect on your "nativity story." What have you been told about your birth? Do you have a baby book? If so, pull it out and look through it. If you have baby books for your children, look through them together. Tell them their "nativity story."
For some, this may be painful. Some have stories of being unwanted, of being one too many, of being born too late. If this is part of your story, please know that God wants you. God cannot have too many children. With God, who is eternal, there is no such thing as too late.
--Leslie Porter
posted by L-Po @ 7:02 PM
1 Comments:
At 2:05 PM,
Anonymous said…
Thank you for the post about the definition of nativity which means "birth". I thought about this and the mention of a baby book. I admire moms and dads (or family members) who put together entire scrapbooks of their children's lives. What a neat way for those individuals to see who and what was surrounding their lives from an early age.
I do not have a baby book. I wish I did. In fact, I have very few photos from my growing up years. I think the earliest photo of me is from when I was 8 months old. My own "nativity scene" is foggy because I don't have those pictures and stories on the mental canvas of my life. This was a little sad at first, but then I was reminded about another birth that clearly stands out on my canvas; my birth into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I can see Jesus in that "nativity scene". It is a scene filled with love, forgiveness, gentleness, grace and celebration. He has a big smile on His face.
What a great "nativity scene" to reflect on! Thank you!
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