 We are now on the fourth and final week of our journey with Mary. Feel free to catch up by reading the previous three entries, Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3. They are pretty quick reads. Last week we were given the encouragement and reminder that we are not alone in the tasks that God has for us. He is with us, Father , Son and Spirit. That's good news. This week we wrap up with verse 38. Just as a reminder, let's re-read the entire passage. "In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
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 We are on week three of our journey with Mary. Feel free to catch up by reading the previous two entries, Part 1 & Part 2. They are pretty quick reads. We left off seeing Mary, after the angel surprised her and told her that she was going to give birth to our King, curious as to how the birth would happen since she was a virgin... seems rational to me. We pick up at verse 35 with the angel's response. 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 the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.” Aside from the overwhelmingly redemptive love story pictured here; the Holy Spirit upon her, the Most High overshadowing her and the son of God being born to her is this, the truth that for all this to happen and to be accomplished it took, not just the Holy Spirit, not just the Father, not just Jesus. It was our Triune God, Father Son and Holy Spirit as One, and all separate, at the same time that accomplished one of the most loving acts ever recorded....God leaving His throne to become one of us, to save us.
This is the powerful truth of our Triune God in action. When God has a task for us, a call that seems too marvelous for mere mortals to accomplish, it's because it is. It is too much for us to handle on our own, but God, in His power doesn't send us out alone. Just as He did in days of old, our Father, by the Power of His Holy Spirit works in us because of the blood of Jesus. One God! So be encouraged today. You are not alone. If God is for us, WHO can be against us? No One and No Thing! Mary understood this. Let us follow her example and embrace the mighty work that God is waiting to do in us, through us and in spite of us. To God be the glory! I love you in the Lord and I am looking forward to wrapping up this mini series with you next week! Feel free to leave your thoughts and insights in the comment section. Mia  In last week's entry, we were given the reminder to not be afraid because we are highly favored as children of God. Because of that, we can freely answer the call to serve and love in whatever God sets before us. This week, I am continuing in our passage of Luke 1:26-38, starting at verse 31- You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 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, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” Did you catch that? "You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 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, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end." Mary was just told that her son was going to be the most amazing son in the whole world (literally), a mothers dream. He was going to be perfect. Her son was going to sit on the throne and rule forever!!
Props to Mary and the trust she had. I would have sarcastically said "Yeah, right!" I believe that Mary completely accepted the foretelling as truth. In faith she simply believed that God could and would do what the angel said. Her only question was a really good one. She obviously understood the birds and the bees and was curious as to how this was all to take place....you know, the actual part of getting pregnant so that the Savior could be born. She was, after all, a virgin. Probably, the most amazing part of all of this is that even before knowing all the details, she was already ALL IN! Sounds like a great example to follow. When we are given a call that we know has been placed on us by the Lord, it's ok to ask questions. But let us ask the Lord to turn our hearts so that the logistical questions we ask are asked in faith, knowing that He will do what He says He will do. Let's ask questions from a posture of being ALL IN. Sometimes, the vision that God lays on our hearts is SO BIG that we cannot fathom how He will accomplish it, especially, through us. But that is the marvelous thing....He is God, He is in the business of marvelous, He's in the business of using us because He loves us. Today, dear friend, trust God. He has done marvelous things. Let's praise Him and watch His plans unfold as He enfolds us into His heart for His glory! I love you in the Lord, Mia Check back next week for Part three!  Christian Denominations handle Mary (the mother of Jesus) in different ways. In some denominations, she is given a lot of play, many props and huge kuddos while in other denominations she is given a mere high five and an "atta girl" and "by the way, thanks, for birthing the King of the world." Wherever you are in the spectrum, let's meet in the middle and just stand in awe of the example she was and is to us as Christians today. I am going to chew this passage apart in three (but, I feel an itching for more) segments. So come back each week as we take time to simply marvel at our Great God through the woman He chose to be the mother of His only begotten son. "In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” There is a lot going on here, but I will just share with you a few of the elements that jumped out at me.
"Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be." She was greeted with the title of being highly favored by God. In her humility, I can only imagined this young girl wanting to turn around and check to see if anyone else was in the room. Maybe the angel was talking to someone else and got confused. How many times do we as redeemed Christians walk around thinking the same thing when a call is placed on our lives and a task is placed directly in our path.... "God? You call ME favored? You are with ME?" then we look over our shoulder convinced He is talking to someone else because we feel unworthy and we convince ourselves that there is someone more qualified and better suited to do the task at hand. The key is not in what we incorrectly think about ourselves, but in the truth of what God knows about us. He is with us. And if He is for us WHO can be against us?!?! Just as Mary was troubled, wondering about this greeting and call on her life, she was immediately comforted by the words of the angel...words which we still hear today...words that can calm the storm...."Do not be afraid" Guess what? He is not calling you to the mighty task of birthing the Savior of the world. It's already been asked and answered, done and accomplished. But, He may be calling you to other Kingdom building work. "Do not be afraid." These words come straight from the heart of God. Know today that He speaks this truth over you. Do not be afraid. The Lord, your God is with you. He goes before you, He is beside you, He is in the rear guarding your ways. Do not be afraid. You, as a child of God and follower of Jesus Christ are highly favored. You are a friend of God. Take the example that Mary gave and be comforted sweet friend. I love you in the Lord and I look forward to week two with you. Feel free to leave your comments and insights. Mia |
The BlogA collection of writings from a life based on the truth that about midnight anything can happen. 
AuthorAs an imperfect servant of the Lord, I often feel I am fumbling my way through life, looking upward for guidance and outward to love. So, I write about it, to break up the noise in my head. Categories
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