Mary Did You Know?
As I pondered Christmas this year, stood over the crib of my screaming daughter the other night I wondered, did Jesus cry like this when he was a baby? He was after all, fully human.
Because of that, I have to assume he did cry as a baby. That means Mary probably had many nights when Jesus was teething or waking to eat during a growth spurt. The Bible does say he experienced what we experienced and we know from the description of his time on the cross that pain was included in his experiences.
So, that led me to wonder, how did Mary deal with it? Mary, though very righteous, was not perfect. Did she ever just want to give up? Did she ever kick Joseph and beg him to please just take over for one night because she was exhausted? Did she go to her local MOPS group and ask for advice on how to deal with tantrums or teething?
Did Jesus throw tantrums? I have written before that I think the cause of many tantrums is unmet expectations. Since we know Mary wasn't perfect, did the toddler Jesus have unmet expectations about meal time, play time, or bed time? Could a man who never sinner have thrown a tantrum as a toddler? Are tantrums always sinful or just a sign that our children are too young to process their emotional response to a given situation?
What was it like to sooth a teething baby knowing that he was your Savior also? Did it help Mary be a more patient mother? How did it affect her parenting style to her other children?
Geez... I thought I knew where I was going when I started writing, but now I seem to have more questions than before. What do you think?
By the way, the title of this post is also the title of one of my favorite Christmas songs.
Because of that, I have to assume he did cry as a baby. That means Mary probably had many nights when Jesus was teething or waking to eat during a growth spurt. The Bible does say he experienced what we experienced and we know from the description of his time on the cross that pain was included in his experiences.
So, that led me to wonder, how did Mary deal with it? Mary, though very righteous, was not perfect. Did she ever just want to give up? Did she ever kick Joseph and beg him to please just take over for one night because she was exhausted? Did she go to her local MOPS group and ask for advice on how to deal with tantrums or teething?
Did Jesus throw tantrums? I have written before that I think the cause of many tantrums is unmet expectations. Since we know Mary wasn't perfect, did the toddler Jesus have unmet expectations about meal time, play time, or bed time? Could a man who never sinner have thrown a tantrum as a toddler? Are tantrums always sinful or just a sign that our children are too young to process their emotional response to a given situation?
What was it like to sooth a teething baby knowing that he was your Savior also? Did it help Mary be a more patient mother? How did it affect her parenting style to her other children?
Geez... I thought I knew where I was going when I started writing, but now I seem to have more questions than before. What do you think?
By the way, the title of this post is also the title of one of my favorite Christmas songs.
Mary Did You Know is one of my favorite Christmas songs (and my husband's all time favorites...mine is a similar one, Breath of Heaven by Amy Grant).
ReplyDeleteI've thought about that a lot...what Jesus was like as a little baby and a little boy. He probably did cry. And we knew it wasn't easy for Mary. The one boyhood episode the Bible tells about in Jesus' life involved not going home with the family caravan and no one knowing where he was for three days. Can you imagine! Not to mention seeing him on the cross long after that. What mother would want to go through that.
But it does help me to know that even the "good" people, with the exception of Jesus, in the Bible were not perfect. It gives me hope that God uses us in our imperfections.
PS...found your post on This for That. What a wonderful post!
ReplyDeleteYou might consider adding it here too:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.halfpastkissintime.com/p/saturday-samplings.html
(I think that's my last post today...sorry about that. Kept having afterthoughts.)
What great ponderings. It must have felt very odd to deal with the normal baby happenings knowing that baby was so much more then a baby. This is one of my favorite Christmas songs as well!
ReplyDeleteTori
http://thriftytori.blogspot.com
I stopped by from This for That at Ten Talents. That is also one of my very favorite Christmas songs. I can't begin to imagine how Mary must have felt but it seems like she would have had all those feelings that we've all had at one time or another.
ReplyDeleteI am listening to this great song as I type :)
ReplyDeleteFunny, this post really made me stop and think! I always picture Jesus as my Savior, not as a child. BUT He was a child! Jesus was tempted in all things just as we are, yet without sin, even at all ages! Good point to bring out to children when teaching them about Jesus...He was a child!