Kelly Carr: Editor of Life

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Thinking About Jesus

I want to catch up on some thoughts I had at Christmastime that I wanted to put in writing.

This Christmas gave me a new perspective on thinking of our Lord and Savior as a baby as I currently have a baby of my own in the house. (You may have heard of her. I post pictures of her here all the time!!) I had so many new thoughts, such as what did Jesus act like as a baby? Did he make faces that Mary and Joseph laughed at? Were his diapers normal or somehow more "holy" in their contents? (You never know!! Maybe they smelled nicer.) What was it like for Mary and Joseph to teach Jesus to walk and talk and spell and count -- they were teaching GOD all these things? How mind-blowing!

God never does things according to human logic. I mean, if you were going to save the world, wouldn't you just snap your fingers and do it? Why wait thousands of years to send Jesus to earth? And why then send Him as a baby instead of as an adult, already at the age where He could teach, make disciples, and be ready to die on the cross?

No, God sent Jesus as a baby. Think of all those years of Jesus growing up. He didn't even know who He was as a kid, a toddler, a baby. What was the point of the time it took to raise Jesus? We don't know anything from his birth until he was 12. What went on? Those years may have seemed a "waste of time" in our impatient minds. But His young life had a purpose too. What was that purpose? What did Mary and Joseph and Jesus' siblings and others all learn from His young life? What was the point of all those years before He could become our Savior?

The other thoughts I had lately was how young Jesus really was. I mean, we all have pictures of Him in our minds and pictures others have painted. Some make Him look very mature. But He began His ministry at age 30. I'm 29 now and Steve's 31. I still think of ourselves as pretty young -- not as young as we used to be, but still young! And not very mature at times! : ) Yet Jesus at 30 had authority and many followers. I can't imagine leading so many people right now in my life. That sounds like a scary prospect. And He died at age 33. When I look at people I know who are 33 (such as Steve's brother, Chris -- shoutout to you!), I realize how young that is. Can you imagine fulfilling not only your life's destiny but fulfilling the world's salvation at age 33?

Perhaps you've thought of these things before. They just struck me anew this season, and I wanted to put them in words before I forget. I like the wonder of these questions, as they remind me that God is definitely far above all my imagination. And I can trust His plans, even though they may be nothing I'd ever expect.