Jeremiah 23:5-8 / Matthew 1:18-24
In most cases, the announcement of a pregnancy is welcomed with great joy and the subsequent waiting for the birth of the baby is filled with hopes and dreams albeit anxiety.
More so if the pregnancy is in the royal circle or with people who are famous and prominent. It will be in the news and there will even be updates on the progress of the pregnancy.
However, in the case of the birth of the Son of God, it was almost like a non-event.
Even the gospel seemed to word it nonchalantly - This is how Jesus Christ came to be born.
And instead of joy and hopes and dreams, there were immediate problems for those who were involved with the pregnancy.
Both Mary and Joseph could not quite explain or understand the mystery of the Incarnation.
Yet God was with them to see them through their difficulties and challenges.
Yes, God lived up to His name: God-is-with-us.
And He will be with us in our Advent preparation, in our difficulties and challenges as well as all the days of our life.