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Great Things 12/21/2018 11:12:31 AM
I believe that God tries to communicate with all of us in a way we can understand and embrace. Perhaps not to the extent of Mary through an angel, but we need to pray to God in the name of Jesus, listen and try to be open to whatever He has in store for us and our lives. “The Mighty One has done great things for me and holy is his name.” Luke 1:49
Today’s Holy Scripture is an answer to the question posed by a popular song called ‘Mary Did You Know?’ that came out just a few years ago. The angel appeared to Mary, and was very clear about what was ahead for her, and she said “Yes!’ all the same. In this Bible passage, Jesus’ mother, Mary, spontaneously expounds on her awe-inspiring feelings of gratitude that she has for God’s unsurpassed gift to her and humanity. She is grateful to God for allowing her the privilege to be Jesus’ mother. Yet Mary had a choice. She did not have to say “Yes,” but did so willingly, with some trepidation, and with complete abandon, then went on to become Jesus’ mother and His first disciple.
Here is the contextual Bible passage for when Mary was approached by God to become Jesus’ loving mother:
The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[b] the Son of God… 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be full-filled.” Then the angel left her.
Sometimes God asks us to do things that are out of our comfort zone. Such was the case with Mary. She was just a young girl, unmarried, and a virgin. Though she was betrothed to Joseph, as you can imagine, in those times, her pregnancy presented serious complications in her life. But she still said “Yes!” to God’s request.
How many times have we tried to avoid what God is asking us to do? How often do we opt to stay in our comfort zone rather than follow God’s leading in our life? Unlike Mary, it is likely that we have never been approached by an angel with a message from God, yet all of us have had times where we feel compelled to ‘do the right thing’ through blessings of conscience. Though I don’t believe in coincidence, there have been times where I felt I got a God-wink that led me out of my comfort zone, to act on something, or to look at something—or someone—in a new way.
I believe that God tries to communicate with all of us in a way we can understand and embrace. Perhaps not to the extent of Mary through an angel, but we need to pray to God in the name of Jesus, listen and try to be open to whatever He has in store for us and our lives. We need to be open to His Holy Love, his peace, His kindness, and His mercy, and share them with others as we have received them from God.
Putting aside any negative imagery of God the Father, we need to bask in His benevolence and Light, and listen a little closer to what He is trying to tell us and show us. His presence is real. Maybe we need to seek Him with greater fervor and a grateful heart and see what miracles He has in store for each of us!
