His mother kept all these sayings in her heart

Luke 2:51

And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

Here we have a most interesting story—the story of Christ as a twelve year old boy. We know that He was the very Son of God, and that becomes evident with the great wisdom that He exhibited at such a young age. He already showed great understanding as He answered the doctors’ questions. He knew more than them despite His youth and their seniority. But today, we come upon this story of Joseph and Mary’s pilgrimage to the temple, at the end of which Jesus stayed behind in the temple. His parents and the family and friends with them had completed their time and began traveling back to their home, when they noticed that someone was missing in the group. And upon further consideration, they found that it was Jesus! He was missing! So they went back to the temple searching for Him, and were, of course, greatly relieved when they found Him. They thought something had happened to Him!

And, as the response of every parent would be, they begin to partially chide Him for staying behind. “Why hast thou dealt thus with us?” Mary asked. “We have sought thee sorrowing!” But the response of Jesus was certainly not what they would have expected. “How is it that ye sought me?” Do you know that these are the first recorded words of Christ? “How is it?” “Did you not know,” He asked, “that I must be about my Father’s business?” They knew that there was something very special about their Son, but they may not have known who He was yet, for they understood not this saying. They did not get it! His Father’s business? What could He possibly have to do? What does He mean, “My Father”? I’m sure many such questions came to their minds. But there is a statement concerning Mary here that is worth considering. She “kept all these sayings in her heart.”

She kept all these sayings! In her heart! We may not understand everything that is said to us, or everything that it seems that God is doing. We may not fully comprehend all the events and circumstances of life. We may not even fully grasp the Word of God. But will you keep these sayings in your heart? Will you contemplate, meditate, ponder? Twice, at least, is it said of Mary that she pondered things in her heart. That which the angel told her, what the shepherds said, and all the events surrounding the advent of Jesus into this world, she considered and pondered. She was a particularly pensive woman. She was thoughtful, considerate, and always listening to the Lord. Now, my friends, if we would only think, perhaps we would not miss as much. Let us be like Mary in this fashion, that we would at least consider and ponder things in our hearts before acting, speaking, or reacting! May God in Heaven give us the temperament of young Mary! How much may be learned from this!

“Dear Father, we praise You for the example given before us of Your own Son and of His earthly mother. For we know that we are all to be about our Father’s business. May we, as Mary, when we don’t understand all that You are doing or saying, commit the matter to our heart and our mind. We know that all things shall be revealed in time. When Simeon spoke to Mary about her heart being pierced, she didn’t understand until she saw her Son on the cross. She didn’t understand what all her Son meant by ‘My Father’s business.’ But she kept it in her heart. Oh Lord, help us to pause and place all things in Your hands that we don’t understand, knowing that You shall reveal it all in Your time. We trust everything now into Your care, and help us to keep our minds on Thee. In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.”