I am ruined! Now that I have spent so much time in God's Word studying the details of the Christmas story, I cannot look at a nativity scene the same! However, I can choose to see all of the details that don't line up with Scripture, or I can choose to use the nativity scene as a reminder of all I've learned through my own studies. And I can use songs like "Be Born in Me" by Francesca Battistelli to lead me back to those Scriptures and identify with this REAL girl, Mary.

I hope this week's episode and song inspire you to do the same.
On this week's episode I discuss:

My choice to use the nativity as tool instead of getting aggravated
Reminding you the importance of context
My treasure hunting path in God's Word this week
Matthew 1:20-23 where the angel tells Joseph the baby fulfills a prophecy
BibleHub.com as a study tool, especially for cross references
Isaiah 7:14 where the original prophecy about Immanuel being born to a virgin is recorded
Luke 1:26-38 where Mary encounters the angel Gabriel and then runs off to Elizabeth's house
Elizabeth's greeting after the filling of the Holy Spirit
WHY Mary is "blessed"
Offering our vacant hearts to God's purposes


Additional Resources

Lyrics
New Release Tuesday article behind the song "Be Born in Me"

This Week's Challenge

Study Mary's song in Luke 1. A fun experiment might be to use a tool like BibleHub.com and look at a verse and then look on the right to see where the cross references might lead you. If something catches your eye, go read those verses in context. It may have NOTHING to do with Mary in the end, but that's okay! The goal is to have fun interacting with God's Word!