‘I am the Lord’s
servant’ (Luke 1:38). One line. One line that sums up Mary’s entire
life, and her entire character. Mary led a life of obedience to God. A life of
self-sacrifice for the greater good. A life which fulfilled the prophecies of
the Old Testament. A life of ‘yes’.
Mary may have been sinless, chosen by
God and eventually the mother of Jesus, but she was still human. She still
faced the pressure put on women throughout the ages to live up to the
perfection expected of her. She still had duties and responsibilities both within
her family and within her community. She had her family’s good reputation to
uphold. Yet in an instant she walked away from all of that because she knew
that the only view of her that really mattered was God’s.
In the Christmas story we have a
tendency to paint a beautiful picture of the flawless woman who popped out a
baby which went on to save the world. We neglect the harsh reality of the life
that Mary accepted in bravely and selflessly saying ‘yes’ to God. Her ‘yes’ was
not an easy response to a simple question posed by a colourful cartoon angel.
It was an agonising choice which not only required great sacrifice, but risked
her life and livelihood!
When the Angel Gabriel appeared to her
with the words ‘You have found favour with God’ (Luke
1:30), Mary had a choice. Though Gabriel brought the news that she would
conceive, that conception had not yet happened. Mary, in her human state, had
free will: she could quite easily have said no. Saying yes meant giving up her
reputation, her family, her freedom and her future. Yet she did it anyway.
She said yes because she trusted that
God knew better than she did. How often are we tempted to take matters into our
own hands and try to manipulate our own lives? Mary reminds us that we are not
meant to be in control of our destiny, and that ultimately handing over that
control completely to God yields a far greater reward.
Notice that, even though she was being
told that something physically impossible was about to happen to her, Mary
never doubted. She questioned how, but didn’t doubt whether God
could create such an event. ‘How can this be?’ (Luke
1:34). Mary was open to the endless possibilities of God’s power, and willingly
gave up the life she had in order to play her intended part in His plan.
Can you truly say ‘I am the Lord’s
servant’? How much would you be willing to sacrifice to follow God wherever he
asked you to go and obey whatever He asked you to do? As you celebrate
Christmas, take time to reflect on your own willingness to take on the
challenges God presents you with. Identify the areas in your life where you are
still holding onto control by the tips of your fingers, and work towards having
the courage to ‘let go and let God’.
Mary laid everything she was and
everything she had before God, offering herself totally and utterly to His
will. Perhaps we could all aim to live just a little more of that life of ‘yes’.
No comments:
Post a Comment