Thursday 2nd December
Crystal Cryer
Tamar
Matthew 1:3
You have to understand…
In my culture, children are a blessing, a sign of the favour of Yahweh.
A man’s source of pride and glory is his lineage, his family name.
But for us as women, whose life options are few and limited, to be the mother of many, to run a household busy with those to whom you have given birth - this is a women’s greatest glory.
As a little girl I would dream…
in the games I played with my friends, in the pictures I drew in the sand and as I would sit in the shade of the pomegranate tree. I dreamt of my own future home filled with the happy laughter of many children and the joy of a proud and contented husband.
You have to understand…
It wasn’t God’s fault.
I knew this.
He had given guidelines, laws even to ensure that no human could rob me of my dream, my glory without securing his anger, his consequences.
And yet…
God was ignored, my dreams cast aside.
My glory trampled into the ground.
First for the sake of one man’s love for himself, then for the sake of a man’s pride, and finally for the sake of another man’s fear.
And the blame was somehow shifted onto me. Blind to their own sin, they decided something must be wrong with me. And I became seen as one God had cursed
But I knew it was not God’s fault.
You have to understand…
It was the very ones designated to provide for me who left me empty, barren, my arms aching to hold, to love, to nurture as I was designed - as was my right.
It was the very ones designated to ensure justice for me who acted unjustly, ensuring only shame for me.
And it was the very ones designated to protect me who abandoned me and then called for my destruction.
So you can judge me.
You can call into question my behaviour - the way in which I provided for myself, the way in which I secured justice for myself, the way in which I protected myself.
But He called me righteous.
Yes, Judah called me righteous.
“Even more righteous than me”, he said
But his words were empty to me.
I refer to the One who remained committed to me through it all.
Yahweh. Yahweh called me righteous.
And He gave me far more than children, precious though they are to me.
For Yahweh has honoured me. He has given me a place beside Him. Where men were ashamed to share a lineage with me, Yahweh proudly names me as a grandmother of his Son, and wonder of wonders, in doing so, relinquishes a “perfect” and “righteous” ancestry for the Messiah.
Where man tried to rob me of my glory, the simple glory of a mother, Yahweh bestowed on me a glory far greater than I could have ever dreamed as that little girl.
And when man tried to forget me and even destroy me, Yahweh granted me eternal life and made certain that I would be remembered, in direct relation to the wonderful Messiah, for all time.
You have to understand…
This God is a just God, full of mercy and compassion.
His faithfulness has no end and his love knows no bounds.
He leaves the many for the one.
He sees those on the fringes and welcomes them in.
He not only redeems, He restores.
Man judges the outside but this God looks lovingly into the heart.
And what man dismisses God values and calls His own.
Blessed be this God who dares to share His glory with me and calls me righteous.
His name be praised forever and ever, Amen.
Crystal comes originally from Oregon, the best state in the US, but has claimed Scotland as home for 12+ years. She is the National Coordinator for 24-7 Prayer Scotland and loves being part of the wild, contagious and life-transforming movement that is 24-7 Prayer. She is also part of the Discovery Church family, a 24-7 Prayer Community Church in beautiful Dunbar, where you can often find her walking on the beach or in the woods. Crystal loves hospitality, reading, talking about prayer, the history of Celtic Christianity, being out in nature, exploring new places and cultures, and good conversations over coffee (or a glass of red wine).
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