December 11, 2019
Mary, Jesus’ mother, doesn’t get as much attention in the Protestant Christian churches as she does in the Catholic churches. In Catholic views, Mary is a saint, is prayed to, but more out of honoring her–they don’t think of her as equal to Jesus. Fun fact: you may have heard of the famous Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris… but did you know there are at least 19 Notre Dame churches in France? Notre Dame just means “our lady” in French, so there are many churches dedicated to her around the world.
We’re not Catholic, but one thing about Mary that amazes me–her response when she finds out she is pregnant with the Savior of the universe:
The angel came to her and said, “Greetings! The Lord is with you; you are very special to him..Don’t be afraid, Mary, because God is very pleased with you. 31 Listen! You will become pregnant and have a baby boy. You will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great. People will call him the Son of the Most High God, and the Lord God will make him king like his ancestor David. 33 He will rule over the people of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.
Luke 1: 28, 31-33 (ERV)
Can you even imagine? God chooses YOU–out of everyone in the universe… to carry out his Master Plan for saving us from sin…what do you say to that?
Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let this thing you have said happen to me!
Luke 1:38 (ERV)
I am the Lord’s servant. Let this happen to me.
She doesn’t say, maybe. She doesn’t ask God a bunch of questions on how it’s going to work. She just says she is the Lord’s servant. That makes me wonder–is God dropping hints that he needs me as part of his master plan, and am I paying attention?
Dear Father, forgive me–I have flaws, and I’m not thinking of how to serve you during the day. Show me a way I can be a servant today–maybe not even the obvious one, but make my heart pure to serve. Amen.
December 10, 2019
