Christmas Ep. 2: “Ideals”
Ideals.
ideal
1: a standard of perfection, beauty, or excellence –Miriam Webster
We live in a world with high ideals. We plan ideal lives. We script perfect storylines. We envision perfect homes…Perfect marriages…Perfect children…Everything neat and tidy. Our minds paint the picture of what will be or what “should be,” and social media has only reinforced our human draw to perfection.
But life has a way of shattering our portrait of ideals. Diagnosis comes. Disappointment comes. Disagreements and unforeseen circumstances arise. Depression sets in and we are left reeling because our ideals are not matching reality. THIS was not how things were “supposed to go.” The disparity between our plan and the unfolding circumstances leaves question marks and uncertainty thick in the air.
This thought of ideals brings to mind Mary, the mother of Jesus. We know very little of her life before she is introduced in Luke 1. We know that she was a very young, engaged, small-town girl. Undoubtedly, she was godly, given the role for which she was chosen. And, undoubtedly, she had ideals: plans for a family with Joseph…Plans for the perfect future. But all her ideals were set aside with that angelic visit announcing that her teenage frame would usher the Messiah into the world. What she had dreamed of was far different than where she found herself. She was thrust into a situation that to all watching eyes, looked like scandal. She, “being great with child,” was required to travel roughly 90 miles over inhospitable terrain to be taxed with Joseph. She was required to birth a baby in a barn, far from her home. She had no attending physicians, medical care, or mother present. Her little family was then forced to run to Egypt to preserve her baby’s life. The birth of Jesus caused a maniacal Herod to pronounce a maniacal edict: slaughter all babies under two in the region of Bethlehem. Undoubtedly, none of these scenarios matched the ideals Mary had painted in her young mind. But, we read one line spoken by Mary upon the angel’s announcement to her that made all the difference: “Behold the handmaiden of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word.” Mary said “yes” to the plan of God before she knew one detail of how that plan would unfold or what that plan would entail. In that moment, Mary handed over the portrait of her ideals. She gave “her plans” and future to the Lord, and as a result, was ushered into the prophetic. Her place in the plan of redemption was secured because of her “yes.” Was it what she hoped for? No! But did it far supersede her wildest dreams? Yes!
2020 has probably taken us all by surprise. Sickness, loss, financial struggle, quarantine, and the like, were not part of our ideals. 2020 has not matched our plans. Our ideals are not being met. And not one of us knows what the future holds. Not one of us can predict tomorrow. But there is a line that will make all the difference as we move ahead: “Be it unto me according to Thy Word.” With Mary, our choice to exchange our plans for His will keep us flexible through whatever lies ahead. Her ability to say those words upfront allowed her to endure through all she faced in the course of her lifetime.
This Christmas, as we look forward to 2021, may we rip up the picture of our ideals and with Mary say, “Be it unto me according to Thy Word.” There may be hardship and challenge ahead, but there is also joy and beauty ahead! Even in the most un-ideal circumstances of our lives, there is goodness and grace to find when we look for it.