Reflections on Christmas; Daily Devotional #5 - “Mary’s Song of Praise”
Preparing the Soil (Introduction): And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his Name. (Luke 1:46-49) How blessed we are to serve a God who uses humble, unknown people to do incredible, miraculous deeds. Sweet Mary would have never imagined that she would be the vessel God would choose to carry and nurture His Son. Her role in Jesus' life would eventually lead her to the foot of the Cross, salvation, and witnessing the power of the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room; a life, I’m convinced, she never dreamed of living. Isn’t it amazing how each person God chooses begins in anonymity and ends with welcoming applause from the host of heaven? Because of His power that dwells within us we are capable of anything He has in mind for us to do. The road that lies before us is filled with the unknown, the unexpected, and the impossible, but with God leading the way, and with His Word as a Lamp unto our feet, there is no telling what miraculous adventures lay ahead. That's what makes Christianity so exciting; we never know what lies around the next bend, but we know that if God is with us, then it will be glorious!
Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth): Amazingly, it is the hard places in our lives that are the most miraculous. God had placed Mary in a very sticky situation. As an unwed mother, she had to endure the confusion and anger of family and friends. But God went before her and made the way easier (Psalm 5:8). Because of God’s intervention, a situation that should have resulted in shame and heartache ended in love and acceptance. And He does the same for every believer that humbly responds to His call to action in faith. Even though some of the valleys He requires us to walk through can be very scary, He has installed supernatural "shock absorbers" around our hearts to absorb the greatest portion of our pain, loss, fear, and anxiety. Never in our wildest dreams did we ever believe that we could walk through some of the storms we have survived; with such minimal pain. Leaning on Jesus has become a way of life, and casting our cares on Him has literally saved our lives. For Christians, good times are very good and bad times are not so bad. Blessed by a God who loves us so completely, we should have no fear of tomorrow. Safely hidden here in the Ark of The Christ, we will stay afloat in any storm.
Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): Even though Mary was chosen for such a wonderful role, she too had to walk in faith, just like the rest of us. Watching God interact with both her and Joseph, strengthens our confidence in His faithfulness. Seeing their confusion, pain, and “humanness”, we can identify with some of the difficulties of walking by faith and not by sight. Yet, just as God was diligent with this precious couple, so will He be with each of us. Because He does not prefer one of us over the other, each of us is eligible for 100% of His attention. No matter how intense the storm, we can be confident that He is going before us, walking by our side and is our rear guard. He will ensure that His divine plan goes exactly as He anticipates. Because, just like Mary, God has done great things for us, and will eternally continue to do so. And as we are faithful to respond to His voice and to submit to His plans, we too will be called blessed for generations! Holy is His Name!
Cultivating (Additional Reading): Psalm 34:2-3; Romans 5:11; Philippians 4:4
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All Bible references are from the New International Version (NIV) unless otherwise noted.