A young woman’s dilemma

  Since we celebrate Christmas in December, June or July is about the time of the year that a young woman came back from her visit to a relative. She was engaged to be married. Actually, according to the law of the land, she was considered to be married already. Before the wedding ceremony took place, she knew she was pregnant and that her husband-to-be did not cause her pregnancy but that it was nevertheless quite legitimate.


  Mary, that was the young woman’s name, had completely surrendered her future to the Lord. She realized, though, that Joseph, her “husband-to-be” also ought to know about her pregnancy. When she returned home after having visited Elizabeth for some time, she went to see Joseph in the carpenter shop.

  This is what she told Joseph. “I had a good visit with Elizabeth” she said, and then added, “Elizabeth is pregnant; she will have a baby any day now and, Joseph, I am pregnant too. Please let me finish before you say something. It is not what you might think. The day I left to see Elizabeth I had a visitor and I did not quite know how to take the message he gave me. As a matter of fact, his greeting already troubled me.

  He said to me, “Greetings to you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” I wondered what kind of greeting this was. He told me not to be afraid for I had found favor with God. Gabriel, that was his name he said, explained that God send him to give me a message.

  The message was that I would become pregnant and give birth to a son. I was to give him the name, Jesus. He added to it that this son will be great and called the Son of the Most High and that the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever: his kingdom will never end.

  I told the angel: “How will this be, I am a virgin?” I told him too that I was bound to be married to you.

  The angel answered: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. He added that Elizabeth in her old age was going to have a child and that she was already in her sixth month.

  All I could say was, “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left.

  As I said already, I did not quite know how to handle this message that is why I left in a hurry to see Elizabeth”.

  Joseph listened quietly while Mary told him all this. He did not know what to think about Mary’s story; it was highly unusual. Mary’s dilemma had now become Joseph’s dilemma. Mary went home; a little later Joseph left also and went to his place. Being a righteous man, he puzzled about what to do in this situation. He did not want to disgrace Mary publicly so he finally decided to hand her, in agreement with Mosaic Law, a letter of divorce because she, in her present condition, did not please him.

  That night Joseph had a restless sleep. When he finally dozed of, he dreamed.

  In his dream, an angel of the Lord appeared to him and said “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because of what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

  Joseph went to see Mary the next morning and told her what he had planned to do but that the Lord interfered with this plan and made him see what His plan was.

  Shortly after Joseph took Mary home as his wife.

  Neither of them did quite comprehend everything, but they praised the Lord for His greatness.

  Sometime later the government decided to have a census of the population and for that reason, everyone received orders to go to the town of their origin. They would have to travel to the town of Bethlehem since both of them descended from the tribe of David.



Are you ready for the backhoe’s arrival?

A backhoe was digging a hole and putting the dirt in a small dump truck.
This was not the first hole dug in this field because all around it were markers with a name and dates on it.
They were preparing a place for another body.
A notice that this body was going to be buried here had probably been in the newspaper before.
I am always curious what those announcements have to say.
Many of them refer to what had been accomplished by this individual or, hobbies that were enjoyed.
Loved ones indicate that they will never forget that this person has been a part of their life.
Gratitude is often expressed to caregivers.
Memorial services are held in different places ranging from pubs to churches.
For many this seems to be it, life has ended the body is buried, no further expectations.
Sometimes there are in those announcements references that declare that they went to be with God or in heaven or, with Jesus their Saviour.
Those present at the cemetery can vouch for it that their bodies were buried.
Those deceased ones must have, at one time or another, declared that they knew that although their bodies were going to be buried they were going to be in heaven, which is the same as being with God or Jesus.
They would be invisible, but nevertheless in a real dimension.
How could they be so sure of this?
During their lifetime they had in one form or another answered the question:
“What is your only comfort, in life and death?” with the statement:
“That I belong - body and soul, in life and in death - not to myself but to my faithful Saviour, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; “That he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation.
Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life.”
When the day comes that the backhoe and the dump truck are in that field to dig another hole, this time for you, do you have this assurance?

The pacemaker

“Ian MacTavish?”
“Aye doc.”
“ I am doctor Borkovski and on your chart I see that three Sundays in a row the paramedics picked you up in the church and brought you to the ER.
Do you have any idea why you faint in church?”
Ian had no idea.
The doctor continued: “We have run some tests and have discovered that there is a slight malfunction in one of your heart muscles. We suspect that some excitement during the church service affects this muscle.
This malfunction can be corrected. We would have to install a pacemaker. The choice is yours. The choices are: You stop going to church or you have this pacemaker installed.”
Ian did not have to think about what to choose.
“Doc“, he said, “ever since I was a wee laddie I have been going to church; in my old age I will keep on doing this. Install this whatever-you-call it.”
    On Monday mornings a number of men, including Ian, meet for coffee in a nearby coffee shop.
That Monday morning Ian was missing.
The next Monday he was back again, relating his experiences.
“The doctor wanted to know why it happens in church.” he said.
“I did not know the answer.”
Irish Jim, so called to distinguish him from Scottish Jim, and living on the same floor in the same apartment building as Ian, spoke up.
“I think I know when it happens.”
Everyone listened expectantly.
Ian, knowing Jim as a habitual joker, suspected that he was going to be made fun of. His suspicion was right.
With a big smile Jim said: “It probably happens when you see the offering plate coming.”

Welcome

June 24 2010 Great Opa Lou is preparing his first blog entry. Please come back soon to read what he has to say.