Find Favor and Treasure Up!

We are talking this week about how to have a Mary Christmas. Mary had to believe that nothing was impossible with God. Mary went on to FIND FAVOR. To have a Mary Christmas you need to find favor too. PS 5:12 tells us that the Lord blesses us and surrounds us with that favor. It simply means that acts of kindness come your way, preferential treatment, approving attitudes encamp around you…everything lines up for your benefit. Now I know that this is a hard thing for many of you to digest today…you have been discouraged for so long, you have been the object of scorn and attack for so long and you have learned how to live by maintaining yourself in your present condition.
If you want to have a MARY Christmas you have to start thinking differently. You are highly favored and right now, today, you are at a place where you can find favor!

If you want to have a MARY Christmas you have to learn how to TREASURE UP. Our text in Luke 2 says that when she was visited by the shepherds and they told her what the angel had said, she treasured up all these things …
When you treasure up, you are accumulating thoughts of all the wonderful treasures that have been done for you. Imagine today, that you and I could start treasuring up all of the precious and wonderful things that God has done for us…that we could gather those things in our mind and lock them away as treasures. That we could become so filled with all of the
"treasures” that there would be no more room for things that were not valuable. Imagine being so full of value and worth that you had no more space to hold feelings of worthlessness. Mary gathered up in her mind all of the words that had been said, the angelic visitation, the future life of her son…her place in God’s plan. She found favor and treasured up!

Favor is all around you today. Embrace it. Treasure up and start on your way to having a very Mary Christmas!