Mary, Did You Know?

Mary did you know that your baby boy will one day walk on water?

Mary did you know that your baby boy will save our sons and daughters?

Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?

This child that you've delivered, will soon deliver you.

Mary did you know that your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?

Mary did you know that your baby boy will calm the storm with his hand?

Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?

And when you kiss your little baby, you kissed the face of God.

The blind will see, the deaf will hear, the dead will live again.

The lamb will leap, the dove will speak, the praises of the lamb.

Mary did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?

Mary did you know that your baby boy will one day rule the nations?

Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?

That sleeping child you're holding is the great I am

This is my all time favorite Christmas song. I love this version; the harmonies, the dissonance, the simplicity of the music video, the facial expressions, the rawness of the acapella rendition, the candles, all of it. I tear up every single time I listen to it. But even more important than all of those things, I love the lyrics.

Can you imagine meeting Mary today? Go to the land of "What If" for a moment and just make-believe with me. Imagine that Jesus had past away about 15 years ago. Mary had Jesus when she was a teenager, he died thirty three years later, and about fifteen years after that I would assume that Mary would be in her early/mid sixties. 

Pretend you're walking with Mary in a local marketplace. It's hot, the two of you have been shopping for a variety of fruits and vegetables for a dinner at church the following evening, but you stopped at the well in the middle of the marketplace for a drink of water. Mary hands you her pot that she had been patiently carrying on her back all morning and asks you fill it for her. She walks over to a shady spot under the tree and closes her eyes to rest for a few moments from the long day of shopping. You watch as strands of her grey hair shake loose from the wind and begin to peek out from under the scarf wrapped around her head. She has a forever smile that plays on the edges of her lips, regardless of what she seems to be talking about. She's just the kind of woman who is constantly filled with joy. You only met her a day or two ago when you were passing through town when you were visiting a local church, but when she overheard you asking another local if she knew of any places in the area you could stay for the night she eagerly stepped up and offered you the extra bed she had in her home. 

You walk over towards her with the water, she opens her eyes, and thanks you continuously for filling it for her. She takes a few sips and then offers it to you. As you sip the cold water you feel it slide down your dry throat and practically spread to every inch of your hot, tired body. The two of you sit under the shade tree watching the children play a game with some rocks a few feet away. After about fifteen minutes of sitting quietly, you get the guts to ask her. 

"Mary, may I ask you a question?" 

She smiles "Sure, go ahead." 

You clear your throat. Even after drinking the water, it suddenly feels very dry again and you start to get nervous. "When you held the baby in your arms in the stable so many years ago, did you have any idea as to the great things He would do?" 

With her eyes, she gives you a deeper and kinder smile that teases you for more information. "Like what?" 

"Well...did you have any inclination that He would perform inconceivable miracles like giving sight to the blind, walking on water, or raising the dead back to life? Did you know that that little, helpless infant would grow up to be a man who would literally carry the weight of the world on his shoulders and die so that sinners could one day live with him in paradise? Did you have any idea?" 

She takes a long sip of her water, sits back, and looks pensively at the same children who were now chasing each other in circles. You hold your breath, worried you've asked a question that she might think is too personal. When she finally speaks, you release a sigh of relief and listen intently. 

"I had no idea." Her eyes close as she remembers the night from so many years ago. "I was such a young girl when he was born. And honestly? I was afraid. Here I was, with my husband and surrounded by animals in a stable, and strangers slowly trickling in to worship to this infant King that I had just given life to. I had no idea what would happen next. I was worried that I wouldn't be a good mother, or at least not one worth raising the Savior of the entire world." Her eyes welled up with tears. "But God provided. He provided a peace for my anxieties, and He always provided a way to care for our sweet little family...No sweet friend, I had no idea of the things the Son of God would do in the lifetime He was given here on earth. I knew He would do great things, but I never imagined." 

Her eyes welled up with tears as she smiled and lifted her head up to the sun that was glowing down on us from the sky. I reached out and touched her hand, and she turned her head and smiled yet again. 

"I miss him," she whispered, "but I know I get to see my little boy again in heaven one day because he provided a way for me to be forgiven for my sins and live in paradise forever."

I'll never know how the woman holding an infant in her arms in a barn felt on an evening thousands of years ago. I'll never know how she felt as her son, the Son of God, took his first steps or said his first words. I'll never be able to imagine what it would be like to watch a perfect little boy grow up into a man who would such astounding things, and know deep in my heart that God had a plan to put the weight of the world on His son's shoulders to save sinners like me. I'll never know, and I can't ever imagine. But I am so so thankful.

This Christmas song, the one we've been singing along to on the radio for years, reminds me of how God can use anybody to accomplish His plans, and that He can do incredible, miraculous things. He just needs for us to trust Him and have faith in His promises to provide. It may seem hard, it may seem impossible. but just like he did for a woman named Mary thousands of years ago; He will provide for me as well.