A Message from Mary for the Ministry

I usually enter the Christmas season with excitement and anticipation. The sights and sounds and smells. A thoroughly planned 25 days of celebration. A decorated home. Christmas music endlessly playing. Oh my, I’m still a kid at heart when it comes to Christmas. Last week, on the second day of Christmas to be precise, I woke to start my day feeling sad, anxious. So much hurt going on around. Christmas was not in my heart. So I went to Mary’s story. I usually do some kind of Christmas devotion during December and I’m taking my Sunday school class through women of the Bible so Mary just seemed logical. Her story becomes so commonplace as we hear the Nativity Story every year, but God gave me a fresh look at her. That’s what I love about His Word. So today, I want to share with you what God spoke to my heart that morning.

I want us to just stop. Be still. And think about this. The Savior of the World entered the world through the womb of a woman. Wow. That should blow us away as women. Read Mary’s story once again:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!” Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.” Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her. Luke 1:26-38

“God sent.” Perhaps that seems like an obvious statement, but it is huge. It declares to us the personal and purposeful work of our God. Notice the first two verses. Three prophecies. And there was one woman in this world that met the requirements to fulfill them. What struck me about this seemingly obvious statement, was how general I tend to think of God’s working. Yet how incredibly specific and personal He works. There will of course never be another Mary. But we are all Mary’s. Think about that in the ministry where God has placed you. Only you can fulfill the role of where you are. God is not random. He doesn’t just stick us in spots. He sees who you are and places you where only you can carry out that ministry.

“Confused and disturbed.” Are there any two better words to describe ministry life? If an angel appeared to me, freaked out would probably better describe my reaction. But what a declaration. To hear a message from God saying that you are highly favored? Humbling. What’s most incredible is Gabriel’s next statement, “Do not be afraid.” I love that the angel acknowledges her fear. He actually says this phrase to every character of the Nativity story. Joseph. Zecharius. Shepherds. I discovered something in my study of this passage. This phrase has a two part meaning. Brace yourself. Seriously. It rocked my world. The first meaning is “to put to flight by terrifying, to scare away.” Girls, the message to Mary was, Do not run away from God, from this calling. Oh but it gets even better! The second part of this meaning is “to treat with deference, to yield out of reverence.” Mary, stay. Stay and submit to your God. Isn’t this ministry life? God invading our lives. With every move. Every new role. Every out of our comfort task. Every new relationship. God saying, I want you for this role. This terrifying and confusing thing. And we respond in one of two ways. We submit and stay. Or we are scared away. Don’t run away from Him.

“I am the Lord’s servant.” Mary submitted and stayed. No wonder God chose her. There’s no freak out. No laundry list of questions, just one simple logistical question. No conditions. No answers. And still this response. Her statement pierces with conviction my meager faith. In one simple response, “May it be done to me as you have said,” this young woman believes the unbelievable. She sacrifices her social standing, choosing faith over fear. She surrenders to her Savior, choosing courage over comfort. She serves her Savior, choosing His plan over her own. This statement leaves me longing for such simple surrender in my own heart. Faith over fear. Courage over comfort. Desire over doubt. I wonder, how was she able? How am I able?

Continue with her story:
A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. She who has believed is blessed because what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled.”

“She who has believed.” That’s it. That’s how she chose to surrender. This phrase literally means “to place confidence in, to entrust, to trust God is able.” Rather than look at the impossibilities, the circumstances, the humiliation, the risk, she looked at Him. She placed her confidence in what she knew to be true about her God. That He is faithful and able. I realized something through the meaning of this one little word. Fear is based on circumstances. Faith is based on Christ. She honestly had no answers. She still had to go back and face a village of scoffers and gossipers. Possibly a ruined betrothal. It was all on the line for her. And she chose to say yes simply because of who He is. Honestly, that’s not always enough for me. Because my confidence is misplaced in my circumstances and comfort. I need answers first. I need to know the outcome. The risk. The reward. She just needed Him.

Let’s continue Mary’s message by looking at her praise:

Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me. He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him. His mighty arm has done tremendous things! He has scattered the proud and haughty ones. He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands. He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful. For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.” Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home. Luke 1:39-56

“How my soul praises.” Keep in mind the doubts and dishonor surrounding her situation. Yet, Mary chose to worship rather than worry. She chose to see honor rather than shame. She focused on Him rather than them. The scoffers and gossipers had no place in her heart. Because her heart was filled and focused on the Savior. May this be our hearts this Christmas. We choose worship over worry. We choose to stay and surrender. We focus on Him rather than them. He is God with us. With you. God, who left eternity to give us eternal life. Who unrobed His glory to be robed in rags. Who wrapped Himself in flesh to wrap us in righteousness. The Savior who enters and dwells within. The Mighty One truly has done great things for you. This Christmas, allow your soul to proclaim the greatness of the Lord. Rejoice in God your Savior. This Christmas, seek the One who seeks you. And ask for a heart that says, “I am your servant. May it be done to me according to Your will.” And birth the presence of Christ in the place where God has called you.