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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

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December 17, 2017

A Charmed Life

Dear friends, I’m so thrilled to be welcoming my friend Debbie Wilson, author of the newly released book ‘Little Women, Big God’ to the picket fence today! I hope that you will take this opportunity to pause in the midst of a busy season to be blessed by her words of encouragement and gentle reminders of truth. 

Can Scandal Be a Sign of God’s Favor? Remembering Mary

“She lives a charmed life,” a friend said regarding her daughter-in-law. “Everything just works out for her.”

If a charmed life is easy, then what do you imagine a highly-favored-of-God life to be?
Mary, the mother of Jesus, was highly favored of God. Yet her life was difficult. God chose Mary to be the mother of His only Son. Gabriel the angel called Mary highly favored of God two times in their brief encounter. “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28).

If an angel called you highly favored, wouldn’t you expect some free “get out of pain” passes? If God picked you to carry His child, wouldn’t you anticipate some special treatment? Surely, He’d prepare your fiancé.
I’m not sure what Mary imagined would happen when she returned from a three-month visit with her cousin to tell Joseph she was pregnant with God’s Son. But he didn’t buy it. Since their engagement could only be ended by divorce or death, he looked for a way to quietly divorce her.


Mary didn’t live a charmed life. Her fiancé believed she was immoral and unfaithful and she had no way to prove her innocence. She saw the hurt in Joseph and couldn’t reassure him of her faithfulness. Since God set the bar on sexual purity, why did He let others believe Mary was sexually loose? Why did He put this couple through this tension?
God did step in and stop Joseph from divorcing Mary. But the religious leaders continued to call Jesus illegitimate even in His adult years. God allowed people—religious leaders—to believe Joseph and Mary were sexually immoral, when they had shown extraordinary restraint. Joseph kept her a virgin until after Jesus’ birth.
I wonder how many Jewish customers and friends Joseph lost in his carpentry business because of this scandal. Wouldn’t you think God would clear the reputation of this highly favored couple?

Conflict may actually be a sign of God’s favor.

Isaiah 55:8 reminds us God’s ways are not our ways. They are better. God did clear Mary’s reputation with those with whom it mattered. He also used this misunderstanding to benefit Mary, Joseph—and us. Mary and Joseph could empathize with those who doubted their story. They didn’t waste energy being offended that others didn’t believe them. After all, it took an angel’s visit for Joseph to understand. Joseph modeled how to handle betrayal. Mary and Joseph’s faith grew. With each new challenge they remembered God’s faithfulness through previous tests.

We benefit. When people believe lies about us, we know we’re in good company. Some of God’s most highly favored saints were misunderstood. Having God’s favor didn’t mean ease for Mary. Instead of having a midwife and a clean bed, Mary delivered God’s Son in a stable. Instead of being escorted by the king’s army, soldiers hunted her boy to murder him. And when Jesus grew up, His scourging and crucifixion pierced her own heart. Definitely not a charmed life! God’s ways are not our ways; they are infinitely better. Despite her trials, Mary learned that no problem is too big for God. She dwells in heaven today with the Father and the Son. If you asked her, she’d say the favor of God surpasses a life of ease.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About the Author:

Debbie W. Wilson is an ordinary woman who has experienced an extraordinary God.


Drawing from her personal walk with Christ, twenty-four years as a Christian counselor, and decades as a Bible teacher, Debbie speaks and writes to help others discover relevant faith. She is the author of Little Women, Big God and Give Yourself a Break.

She and her husband, Larry, founded Lighthouse Ministries in 1991. Share her journey to refreshing faith at her blog.
Facebook Twitter

 

Thank you so much for meeting us at the fence today!

5 Comments Filed Under: Devotionals, Faith, Good Thoughts

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Norma Rolader says

    December 17, 2017 at 3:39 AM

    Aww precious and thank you for the message God bless

    Reply
    • Debbie Wilson says

      December 18, 2017 at 6:11 AM

      God bless you, too, Norma!

      Reply
  2. Michele says

    December 17, 2017 at 9:31 PM

    OH, so very well written. She is a beautiful, talented and faithful to God woman.

    This was a delightful reminder of how to properly look at the events leading up to the birth of Jesus.

    Thank you Picket Fencers, and much thanks to Debbie.

    God bless you all.

    Reply
    • Debbie Wilson says

      December 18, 2017 at 6:12 AM

      Thank you, Michele! Merry Christmas.

      Reply
  3. Julie Briones says

    January 8, 2018 at 2:06 PM

    Love this… and I agree! God is good, all the time, even when it doesn’t look like it to us!

    Reply

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“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10
This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

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But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

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What’s the weather like where you are?
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For he grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; he has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to him.

He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried; yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 

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Isn't it amazing how small gestures can make us feel less invisible? Knowing that someone is thinking of us and takes the time to meet a need that we might not have even realized we had? These little acts can have big impacts. What is something that someone has done for you recently that made you feel valued and seen?

What have you done for someone else to remind them that you are paying attention to their needs?

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#palmsunday
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