Today we head into the final week of waiting for our annual celebration of the birth of Mary’s son, Jesus. We expectantly anticipate the coming—the Advent—of the Son of the Most High as she did. During each week of Advent, I focused on finding the traditional Advent themes in Mary's story.
Mary of Nazareth
How Will I Know This For Certain?
"How will I know this for certain?" Zechariah asked and God called his question unbelief. Mary asked "How will this be?" and God said she believed. So why was Zechariah’s question not acceptable and Mary’s was?
Even More on Mary
Since publishing Favored, Blessed, Pierced: A Fresh Look at Mary of Nazareth, I have discovered or written other pieces that shed more light on this amazing woman and her story. Here they are for your reference.
Mary of Nazareth: A Poem
This excerpt of "Quattro Marias" a poem by my sister-in-law, Karen Dubert describes Mary of Nazareth at Jesus's death and birth.
Hopeless
My devotional asks me, "What can I do to relieve the fears of others?" I am stopped short. I have been exacerbating fears, not relieving them.
Blessed Alliance
For about ten years, my husband served on the elder board of a local church. After every meeting, he would describe to me some of the items discussed and decisions made. Almost every time, I would think of something the all-male board had not considered.
Childbirth
Christmas is, after all, about giving birth. And childbirth is raw and painful, bloody and messy.
Speak Well Of
In Favored, Blessed, Pierced: A Fresh Look at Mary of Nazareth, we discover that Mary was blessed—makarios—which means “to be well off.” But another Greek word also translated "blessed” describes Mary too: eulogeo.
