16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
Mary holds all these things that have happened as a treasure in her heart. She does not go around announcing everything that has happened, but keeps them safe for a future time. She doesn’t talk about the angel telling her of the miraculous conception. She doesn’t retell the shepherd’s sudden arrival following their angelic announcement. She treasures them. Some things are to be broadcast. Some things are to be treasured. Mary knew the difference. Her role was not one of announcing or broadcasting. She was to treasure and ponder what she knew. Sometimes in life we need to just sit on a truth for a while and let it soak in. We often get in too much of a hurry when we learn a new truth. We need to let the truth we learn soak deep into our being. If we absorb the truth we have learned, it will tell itself in our lives. Our lives will reflect the truth we have learned and absorbed. If we just tell the truth without living it, we come across as hypocritical. Our lives and our words must match. Mary needed Jesus to finish His life and ministry before the truth she had been told would be accepted. They would seem like foolishness if Jesus’ life of perfection was still in the future. If Jesus had not risen from the dead, how could the words to Mary of a Savior be true? She had to ponder until they were fulfilled. Then she could talk about them. Sometimes we must sit on the promises of God for years before we can talk about them. We need to see them fulfilled in our lives, then the words we speak will have power, because God will have demonstrated His power in our lives. We don’t need to spotlight a message we have received, if the point of the message is to glorify God. If God is glorified, who cares about the fact that He told you years before that He would be glorified! Keep the spotlight on the Lord, not on any word He gave you in advance. Keep the focus on Him.
The Arnold Journey 