But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19 (ESV)
There are two different occasions in Luke chapter 2, where the heart of Mary is revealed to us, and we are able to see a glimpse of the special relationship she had with her son, the Son. Mary was given the announcement of her coming pregnancy and birth of a son by an angel. To which, she simply inquired about how this was to be and then accepted her role in the eternal story of God. For the most part, I think we just take for granted that Mary accepted this role without hesitation and never questioned. We see her as submissive and obedient, which she was. She gave herself to the will of the Lord and set aside her reputation and standing among her people for the glory of the coming Christ. May’s heart had a special compartment that she took advantage of and her story encourages me to do the same. Mary’s skill was to treasure up all she was seeing the Lord work in her life. She treasured them up and pondered them. She gained encouragement and strength through the persistent and intentional work of God in the life of Jesus.
Mary treasured up all these things. It is such a beautiful phrase. To treasure up something means to give it high value and importance. Such a high value and importance that you work diligently to preserve the memory. Often times, my heart leaps at the revealed work of Christ in my life. I see the movement of God in my life and I rejoice. I give praise and thanks. Yet, days later this joy and excitement fades as life moves on and the memory fades along with the joy. I lose that memory because I do not treasure it up. I value it for the moment, and I am truly excited, but I neglect to store it. When I treasure something, I intentionally mark it as valuable. I may put it in a bank or a safe deposit box. I may even put it in my home and display it prominently for everyone to see. To treasure something is to place a value upon it and to give it prominence in my life.
Mary didn’t stop at just treasuring it up. She didn’t take these valuable moments and lock them away. The key to the heart of Mary is that she treasured up these moments and then pondered them. She brought these moments back to the forefront of her attention and pondered them in her heart. It wasn’t enough for her to have a good memory of an event. I think of it as a photograph of an event I want to remember. As I look up from my chair, I see a picture I took from a bridge in Paris. It’s a beautiful picture that stirs up happy emotions within me. That is good and I am glad for it, but really when I ponder that photo in my heart, I am reminded of the trip to Paris with my daughter. I remember the conversations, the laughter, and the emotional connections we had on the trip. I am reminded of the relational love I have for my daughter and she has for me. This is what Mary is pondering. She is taking this treasure and using it to remind herself of the goodness of God and the promises made to her and her people. This treasure was not something she hoarded and locked away, but something she valued and went back to often. She pondered these events along with their meaning in her life and relationship.
This is the life takeaway. I need to train my heart to better treasure up all the good and wonderful ways that Christ is working in and through me. I tend to focus and store up the hurts and pains. These are useful in their own manner, but I really need to be better about seeing the work of the Lord and treasuring them up and pondering them. Taking time to document the special moments, then referring back to them. Part of this happens through journaling for me. My treasuring up is mostly through an intentional written recording of what God is working in my heart and how I am engaging in this activity. I need my journal to be an outlet for my brain to process and think and ponder. At times, I am more inclined to journal than others, but I need to work harder at incorporating it into more of a daily habit. I need to better reflect on the day Christ has given me.
I need to then spend some intentional time pondering. Pondering on what has happened recently, but to also take some time to ponder what has happened in the past. There are some particular moments in my life where God spoke through my journal to my older self. Times when I have gone back and read through struggles and hard times. On this side of things, I have a better understanding of what God was doing in that past moment. It helps me see my own heart on a deeper level. And seeing my heart in a past situation, reveals the current state of my heart. The treasure that I ponder speaks to me throughout my lifetime. So my desire is to be more like Mary and treasure up these things. To treasure them up and take time to ponder and reflect on the steadfast love and mercy of God working in my life.