Luke 1: 46-56
Mary’s Song
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me — holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
You will never become humble without practise! When Mary says ‘my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant’, it didn’t just happen. Although Mary was still a young teenager my hunch is it was her humility, which meant the Lord singled her out for this hugely significant role in the outworking of his mission. She practiced a humility in her heart attitudes towards God and other people … the spoken words are an overflow of her heart.
If we take a closer look at what Mary is expressing here, we might be able to practise a few things ourselves during this Advent period:
Mary delights in being caught up with the call of God upon her life. ‘My spirit rejoices’ reveals a heart, which is keen to be a servant of the one, true, living God. Where is our delight in serving God? My mentor has a habit of asking me ‘where are you finding joy right now?’
Mary submits willingly to the bigger picture God has in mind, she cannot possibly fully see. However, in spite of not seeing everything (or fully comprehending), she wants to be a ‘servant’ of the Lord. She knows this is the route to blessing. Where do we need to stop struggling against what we believe God is looking to do through our life? Are we guilty of wanting to start from somewhere other than where we really are? Accepting where we are is the only place from which we can take our next step.
Mary trusts wholeheartedly in faithfulness of the Lord. It’s so often what we say, which reveals where we place our trust. Mary’s song reveals she is putting her whole trust in God for her future. How can she do this when so much is uncertain, threatening and unknown? Because her life experience has taught her God has been faithful to her up until this moment in time, just as He has been faithful ‘for ever’ (55).
If we are struggling to place our whole life in God’s hands, it may well be something is being revealed to us which we need to address in our past, or present. Are there areas where you secretly resent what life appears to have dealt you, or things you cannot see how God can turn around for his greater and good purposes?
Maybe you need to look again at those things? Seek God’s forgiveness, which you know in your head is freely given, but ask for it in these areas of your life, so you can start trusting God there. If we can practice trusting God in the difficult, dark, vulnerable parts of our lives, we shall find it much easier to respond in declaring our trust in whatever circumstances arise next.
Basically aim at delighting in the life of blessing God has given you, rather than looking at someone else’s, submit willingly to the Lord’s will, put you’re your trust in Him and you’ll find contentment. Humility will be thrown in as a give away!
| Prayer: Dear Lord. Forgive me where I struggle to forgive myself and keep you out of what I see as too difficult to deal with right now. Help me to start delighting in what you’ve given and trust you willingly for all I am, as well as all I need to become. Amen. |
