God Hears Christmas FearsSample

Luke 1:28 gives us some more information about Mary: she was highly favored. I hope that each of our lives can be described that way—that we have a testimony of humility before God, that our attitude is that we want to serve God and have a relationship with Him, and that we do the things He tells us to do. Mary was this type of person.

We certainly ought to respect Mary because God said she was highly favored, but people have taken Mary and elevated her too high. We should not pray to her, nor do we get saved through her. Even Mary had to get saved through her Son whose name was going to be Jesus. 

The Lord is with thee – I love that! This had to be a fearful time in Mary’s life. What would people say? Would Joseph treat her the same and still love her? But God in His goodness sent an angel to calm Mary’s fears. He assured her that the Lord was with her during this frightening time. 

I wish we could see a video of Mary’s encounter with the angel Gabriel. She was probably alone in the house, maybe about to fall asleep. Suddenly, there was an angel in the room! He said some things that caused her some anxiety–that she was favored, she was blessed–and she was troubled at his saying this. She had to be trying to process it all. So many thoughts had to be bouncing around in her mind, trying to figure out what was going on. Up to this point, I think her life had been very ordinary. 

God knows your fears. Fears are normal. Fears are part of life. It is an emotion that shows up when something does not seem right or feel right, and we are afraid or troubled. But God knows your fears even before you do. If you have trusted Christ as your personal Savior, then you belong to Him! You are a child of God! You do not need to fear!  God is always with you.

While today we may not hear from angels, this message is still for you and me: the Lord is with thee. No matter what kind of stress and fear you are dealing with this holiday season, remember that the God of this universe is with you.