Why me?

by Jonathan Krause

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And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? (Luke 1:43)

Read Luke 1:39–45

What a wonderful Christmas reading this is. So full of joy. The baby John in Elizabeth’s womb. Elizabeth. Mary, no doubt. And, of course, you and me, reading this, knowing the child they are talking about is Jesus, God’s gift to our world. What’s interesting to me is Elizabeth’s words, ‘And why has this happened to me?’

Normally, when you hear someone say this, they are discussing something bad that has happened to them. The post that jumped into their rear bumper as they reversed out of a car park. The shopping bag full of cans that split and spilled. The police officer who just happened to be waiting, with a speed gun poised, as they failed to slow down to the required 60 kilometres per hour upon entering a town. You probably have your own examples you can add.

On a more serious level, we can ask the ‘Why me?’ questions when the doctor shares a sudden cancer diagnosis. When a favourite family member passes on. When a child or friend is suddenly upset with you, for no reason you can find.

Why has this happened to me?

It seems we ask the same question far less often when something wonderful happens. We may think we deserve it. We might say, ‘About time.’ Or we might just consider it normal.

In social media, research shows that negative news spreads far faster than positive news. That can lead to what my son (and his generation) call ‘doomscrolling’: going from one negative social media post to the next. Never realising you are getting more and more numbed to the ‘bad’ you see and, therefore, need even worse bad news to have the same impact. Wow, I sound like an old codger there, don’t I?! If you still watch TV news, as I do – though often with gritted teeth – you’ll know the balance between negative and positive news is statistically 90 per cent negative.

So, today, my encouragement to you, and my goal for myself, is that we do the opposite. Share some good news to counter the bad. Offer up the best news of all: what the birth of Jesus means for our lives – and that when we do, we are as excited as Elizabeth and as the baby growing in her womb jumping for joy.

Maybe this is why the gift of ‘Jesus happened to me’.

Lord, you know ‘Why me?’, even if sometimes I don’t. Fill me with the joy of Elizabeth, so I can share your good news with those around me who need it now. Amen.

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