Treasure Chests
“So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”
Luke 2:16–20
Luke’s orderly telling of the Advent and Christmas story ends by pointing to the culmination of the events leading up to the birth of Jesus and climaxing with the visit of the shepherds who only confirm what Mary had been told by Gabriel.
We are told that when Mary heard it all, she “treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” Mary treasured the words because they were a confirmation of what had been promised. It was the fruit of a miraculous conception, months of labor, and, finally, the delivery of God in human form. What we do not know is what Mary specifically pondered in her heart. Mary pondered the gift of life.
Much of the heartache I have experienced and witnessed in my ministry has been from the fruit of ingratitude. I have been guilty of it and have witnessed what such ingratitude does in the lives of others. Perhaps it is human nature to notice who is ahead and who is behind; who has more or less; who is attractive, wealthy or successful and who is not. This constant comparison between your life and possessions with those of others is something I like to call “comparative living.” I think our media-driven world has made comparative living worse.
Television, magazine covers, or a quick Internet search can lead us to that person who is just one rung above us on life’s ladder. And if we spend too much time investing in this comparative living, we will lose the game of “one-up-man-ship” because we can always find someone who seems to have it better than we do. What about appreciating what we have and where we are right now? What about enjoying the time we have been given and the relationships and work God has entrusted to us? Can you appreciate the moment you are in right now?
The truth is that comparative living can work both ways. Whether looking up or down the ladder, we will always find someone doing better or worse than us. This downward and upward gaze keeps your eyes and your heart from missing the rung we have been asked to hold. How can we accept the invitation to “be content with what we have”?[1]
No one taught me this better than John Claypool. He witnessed much heartache in his many years of pastoral ministry, but none as difficult as the heartache he felt when his daughter’s life gave way after a lengthy battle with childhood leukemia. I remember John telling me that, though he knew her death was imminent when she took her last breath, he could not believe it; he was overwhelmed with grief. Some days after her death, John took his wife and son to a restaurant they always visited on Sundays after church. He said they sat in their favorite spot and his eyes turned to her empty chair. It was at that moment when he thought, “I just do not know how I can go on.”
Then, almost as a gift of grace, his eyes fell on his son and his heart turned. He thought, “I have to go on; there is my son whom I love as much as my daughter and who needs me now more than ever.” It was the beginning of a process that ultimately guided John to a monumental decision about moving through the valley of the shadow of death. John contemplated that he could spend the rest of his life being angry at God and the world because his daughter left this life after only 10 years, or he could spend the rest of his life being thankful that he had her in his life. He chose gratitude for the life entrusted to his care. It was then that John had his favorite motto, “Life is a Gift” engraved on a small plaque and displayed on his desk.
A treasure chest is a place where one usually stores things of great value. Mary chose her heart as her “treasure chest.” She pondered not what lay ahead for her new babe, but the moment itself, the child himself. My guess is she did not think, “I wish this was just my baby and not God’s,” or “I wish we were not in this smelly manger,” or “How on earth did these shepherds find out and what are they doing here?” My hunch is she took it all in and gave thanks for the gift of life and treasured that in her heart. A treasure chest indeed. We would be wise to do the same for every minute of life we have been given.
A Question to Ponder as you Prepare Room for the Christ Child
Where do you find yourself comparing your life to the lives of others? Ponder the waste of time that may be and make room in your heart for the gift of life you have been given. Can you?
A Prayer
The following is not a written prayer, but a body prayer taught to me years ago by John Claypool. Throughout our many years together, I have shared this prayer with members of the St. Martin’s Family several times. Take a moment and stand. Place your hands by your sides and in your mind’s eye, physically gather all the pain, anxiety, sin, worry and fear you carry. Now, by moving your hands from your sides up to your heart, collect these cares as you move your hands to your heart.
Once your hands reach your heart, hold your cares there for just a moment. Then take your cares in your hands and move your hands upward, forming your arms into a chalice and offering these parts of your soul to God’s redeeming grace. Leave your hands there for a moment; release them all.
Now leaving your hands and arms open as a chalice, again in your mind’s eye, envision God pouring His healing, grace, forgiveness, life, and peace into your arms. Once you have received them, move your hands and arms back down, placing these gifts into your heart. Hold your hands there for a moment, and then move them slowly to your sides, allowing those gifts to pour out of your heart into the rest of your being.
Finally, stand meditating on these gifts and end with the words, “I receive, in Jesus’s name, Amen.”
[1] Hebrews 13:5.
