A New Mom
I’ve been thinking a lot about moms lately in this crazy May season so full of “moming” things!
Makes me reflect about Jesus’ mom. What was she thinking and feeling as a first-time mother?
I tend to think with the modern depictions of the nativity scene. Mary… calm, tenderly gazing at her holy child. But before that, I see her going into labor as she rides into crowded Bethlehem on a donkey and Joseph frantically looks for a place for her to deliver her baby.
But scripture isn’t loaded with details on this event so we tend to draw some conclusions. It never actually mentions a donkey… maybe she walked?
Can you imagine what it must have been like for her? She’s young and super pregnant. Were her feet swollen? Did she feel overwhelmed by the crowds traveling around her? Was she a planner feeling completely helpless as things weren’t going to plan in convenient timing? Was she thinking ahead and trying to figure out what the next few days might look like? Was she afraid of labor? Were there other family members traveling with them (didn’t everyone have to register for the census?) or did she feel alone apart from Joseph? By the time they reach the town it’s full and they have nowhere to go.
Luke 2:5-6 says Joseph traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem (which scholars estimate took 4 days): “in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.” (NASB)
Did they register when they arrived, before she had the baby? Did she have to stand in long lines while still pregnant with aching feet and back? What was going through her mind?
“It’s my fault we’re staying in stable. If only I could’ve gone faster and not taken so many breaks, we could’ve found a proper place. Everyone was passing us on the road, I should’ve known better and we should’ve left earlier. Not a great start! What kind of mother will I be if I can’t even bring my baby into the world in a civilized manner? Do I have what it takes to be a good mom? Am I enough?”
We have the luxury of seeing how the stable and other details described in scripture were part of God’s divine plan to bring His Son into the world in the lowliest of ways. But I wonder if as a woman/mom and the one entrusted with His Child, Mary would’ve felt responsible for any of it (as we women feel responsible for so much today).
Maybe her faith was stronger than mine when I was her age (probably). Maybe she didn’t have anxiety. She did have a personal encounter with an angel which must’ve been fortifying. And she was carrying the Prince of Peace, so I know she had a different advantage than other moms. Maybe she didn’t wrestle with the same lies many women do today (I know our culture plays into those quite a bit). Maybe she wasn’t feeling the pressure of society to “have it all together” and live up to expectations.
Or maybe since she was the only one deemed worthy of being the mother of Jesus, she had a totally different set of expectations that she felt she needed to live up to! But she WAS still human… and a woman in a difficult culture as far as women were concerned, and she was a first-time mom.
Just interesting to ponder.
What emotions do you think she might’ve felt? Or what things do you think she might’ve been thinking about? Leave a comment.