Grow Pregnant with God
I've been pondering the 4 aspects of the Advent Conspiracy fairly consistently over the last week or so, as it seems to be coming up a lot (go figure) and seem to be caught in the mud on one in particular. "Spend less" and "Give more" are fairly easy to grasp. "Love all" will always be one of those lofty concepts to me. But "Worship fully" is another story.
Around this time every year, a discussion inevitably arises about how exactly Mary became pregnant. I'm not sure why this continually comes up around me, but it's lead to some rather humorous discussions at times. And still, at other times, it has lead to some of the greatest, most thought-provoking ideas.
In Luke 1, we hear the story of Mary finding out the news that she is going to give birth to the Son of God. What is so special about this account, though, is that it is the only place where we hear Mary's reaction to the news. And what does she do? She worships God. She glorifies and rejoices in the Lord. She is not facing easy circumstances, but she reflects on the joy of Him.
Thomas Hoffman writes much better about this than I ever could in A Child in Winter:
"Standing at the threshold of another Advent we begin our season of growth and expectation - a time to secret ourselves with Mary, to join our hearts with hers, and to grow pregnant with God together. God invites us to a quiet place of reflection and bounty. This Advent, choose some time for silence. Make space within yourself to grow large with the abundance of God's favor. Make this a time to fill your lungs deeply with God so that you can breathe Christ into the world."
May we take time to reflect on Him this Advent and learn what it is to worship fully.
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