David's Underwear

Luke 2

1And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

2(And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

3And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

4And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

5To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

Any time that that particular passage is read, I know that if I look at my Mom she will be laughing. Truthfully, I'm usually laughing too. It's taken me a few years to get to this point, but I can laugh now.

When I was about 11 years old, we had started attending a new church. During the Christmas Tree decorating event the pastor thought that it would be good if some of the kids read the Christmas story. I was assigned the first part of Luke 2. I've always been an avid reader, but I proved that I could still make terrific blunders when asked to read aloud. I came to the phrase "of the house and lineage of David" and somehow, it came out "of the house and lingerie of David". My parents were quite mortified. Some of the teens were laughing so hard that they had to hide behind the Christmas tree. I was quite embarrassed later when I realized my mistake, and I was chagrined by the annual re-telling of the story for a number of years.

Time has given me the ability to laugh at the story and even tell it myself on occasion. How I wish that my pride did not keep me from laughing at my mistakes more readily! Truly, I do find myself in some of the strangest situations and quite frequently my mouth has a mind of its own, and things don't come out quite how I expect. Rather than feeling that my pride has suffered, it would be better for me to laugh along with everyone else.

Pride has no place in the heart of a follower of Christ. Pride robs us of so much, but only because we allow it to. How many times do I miss out on a good laugh because of my pride? How many times is my joy disturbed and my peace diminished because of my pride? How often do I refuse to accept help that others would gladly give because of my pride? How often do I refuse to rest in Him because of my pride? Pride gives us nothing, and costs us much.

So, whenever I hear this passage of scripture, I will certainly laugh, but I will also remember the importance of letting go of my pride. It turns out that God can use anything to teach a willing heart, even underwear...