A Thought For The Week Of December 10

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” This, according to Luke's Gospel, was Mary's response to the angel who told her that she would become pregnant with Jesus even though she was a virgin. The virgin birth, of course, is a big part of this time of year. We remember it at Christmas, we sing about it, we read about it, perhaps some of us even preach about it. It's also one of the more questioned parts of the gospel account of Jesus' birth. Was she really a virgin? How could she have been? That's impossible. Those are the objections we hear - and there are more, of course. Well, I'm going to come clean - I believe in the virgin birth. I believe in it because no one has given me a good reason as to why it couldn't have happened! Are we really to reduce God's ability to do miracles of any sort? Is God really to be reduced to nothing more than a cosmic version of - well - me? With all of my limitations? Not able to do anything that I can't do? I hope not. I choose not to make God in my image and I choose not to make God subject to my limitations. I choose to believe in a God who is far greater than I am and who can do the most amazing and - yes - even miraculous things; things I could never even dream of doing. Part of the wonder of the story of the virgin birth at Christmas (or any other time) is that it reminds me of just that - I can't reduce God to less than what God is. My only hope is that God will raise me to more than I ever imagined I could be. So, yes, I believe in the virgin birth. For me, it's part of the vision of hope that's contained in the Gospel. Have a great week!