I
started pondering Mary recently. Mary
was a young woman; willing to be used by God and able to handle the
unknown. My pondering wasn’t so much on why she said
yes, it was more on how she handled all that life threw at her. I got to thinking – What kind of life did she
live that she was so adaptable to what was happening with her. I’m a working mom and wife with three
daughters, an amazing husband, a house and a crazy puppy. Sometimes I don’t roll with the punches so
well. My head sinks into the worry of
control instead of putting my needs in the box marked “Jesus takes care of this
one”. So back to Mary – what was with
her and how did she do life with such grace?
I started out by asking about her home life. Was Mary well to do or not so much, and what
I found out was that – Mary’s family was actually in the lineage of King
David. Due to the long period of time
that the Israelites were in captivity, the status and the wealth of their
family reduced them to poverty. Mary's
family were still devout Jews however; Training up in the Holy Scriptures. Somewhere along the line, they had also
taught Mary. I imagine the family sitting
around, Dad reading scripture to his children, and Mary soaking in every
detail. Hearing of the hope of the
coming King, she ponders these prophecies in her heart – hoping to be part of
the story someday. A virgin mother will
bring forth the birth of the savior of the world. I can see it as my modern day Wonder
Woman. In the same way that we have people
we look up to, Mary saw all this unfulfilled prophecy and dreamed of a time
where she could be the instrument to help it come to pass.
And then, enter the Angel of the Lord – Mary – God found
favor in you and wants you to birth baby Jesus.
Without thought of the Jewish law, she says YES! Being an unwed mother or having sex out of
marriage would have meant being stoned to death for this innocent young
woman. But being a woman after God’s heart
- she had blinders on for the one who had captivated her imaginations and
thoughts.
My next question then came – Why, after finding out from
the Angel that she was pregnant did she rush off to take care of
Elizabeth? I pondered the Law – was she
aware that she could be stoned to death?
Was she aware that Joseph had considered divorce? I wondered, if she had known all this –
perhaps did she have a chat with her mom and dad? “Mom, Dad, An angel came and told me I’m
pregnant with the savior of the world and well… I’m keeping Him – don’t hate me
– I swear I didn’t do anything wrong… and by the way – Elizabeth is pregnant too
so I’m running away… “But reading further into the Magnificat, we see a Mary
who is completely in love and excited – so there was absolutely no fear within
her about her upcoming motherhood, or the social stigma that could ensue.
Luke 1:46-55English Standard Version (ESV)
Mary's Song
of Praise: The Magnificat
46 And
Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50 And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
Perfect
love was growing within her womb – there was no place for fear or sorrow; no
place for concern or worry – Just pure Love and Joy.
I can only speculate and ponder the actual events that occurred
during those nine months. Researching
why Mary went to visit Elizabeth, I pondered also – was it Jewish tradition for
a woman to help another in their end stages of pregnancy? Did Mary go to serve Elizabeth? That would be something of a cultural norm I
suppose. Did you know that Zechariah was
a priest? During his time at the temple
when he had the encounter with the Angel, he was serving for his time period of
duty. The angel foretold of his son John
being filled with the Holy Spirit before birth (Luke 1:15). Upon Mary’s arrival, this prophecy comes true,
and Mary becomes the very first evangelist in history. Mary enters Elizabeth’s home and baby John
leaps within Elizabeth’s womb, being filled with the Holy Spirit. Can you imagine the conversations that must
have taken place in that home at that time?
Zechariah not being able to talk because the angel had shut up his mouth
for doubting the word from the Lord, listening in on Mary as she excitedly
talks about her angelic visitations and how they aligned with what the
scriptures foretold – and then being told she was with child… Can you imagine the joy and excitement as she
was received with love because the Holy Spirit had already confirmed the great
event that was unfolding in front of their lives?
Joseph seemed to be the only one struggling with current
events in this story. How had Mary
become pregnant when they hadn’t known each other – the great disappointment
and sorrow – yet he loved her enough that he was going to take care of business
with her in a way that would protect her.
Annnnnd then the angel shows up and is like – dude – she’s good – you still
should marry her because she’s carrying God’s baby, she’s still a virgin and
she’s really going to need you. So
Joseph changes his mind and gets in alignment with God’s plan. What ensues is still vague to me – I’m not
sure if when Mary returned from Elizabeth’s, if Joseph and Mary started living
together or not – I’m assuming they did because Luke 2:4-5 says that when the
time came for them to travel to Egypt for the Census, he went with Mary, his
betrothed (He wouldn’t have considered divorce if they weren’t married). Betrothed can also mean engaged, but in their
day – it was a legal binding commitment.
Matthew 1:24 says also that when Joseph awoke from the angelic
visitation – he “took” his wife. I
presume it fair to even think that because of this swift action, Mary possibly
didn’t have to face the shame of being unwed and pregnant – she was covered by
the protection of the Lord – I could be wrong.
The Joy of the Lord was her strength.
In
this busy season of Christmas with all the planning and parties and shopping
and getting, it can be overwhelming. Mary – in her ninth month of pregnancy had to
go to Egypt with Joseph for the Census that was taking place. A long ride... on a donkey... when you’re
already uncomfortable. To boot, after
arriving, she goes into labor. Joseph
had been looking for a place for them to stay to no avail, and now it’s
seriously crunch time. This is the part
I’ve been pondering lately – With all that I have on my to-do list – I admit –
I’ve let the stress get to me. But the
thought of being in the position where my baby is arriving and I don’t have a
crib or car seat or any of the cute little things that go along with having a
newborn, much less a hospital!!! That
would have been reason enough for a serious meltdown for me. I honestly think I would have demanded
something – thrown out the obvious – can’t you see I’m in labor? I need a room and I need one NOW! No ambulance to call, no hospital to
comfortably go to with attending doctors and nurses – No – she ends up in a
barn. I mean seriously… I’m probably way
too city girl to be compared to Mary.
Just the smell of cows and their remains is enough to make me want to
gag – but to delivery my new baby there?
No wait – to even go in a barn when I’m not pregnant is not on top of my
– let’s do this – list. This story
parallels the stories we hear occasionally of women who do those drive through
births – yeah I sneezed and the baby came out, or – I didn’t make it to the
hospital so he was delivered in the car…
Such an anomaly that the story of the birth alone is enough to bind
every pregnant woman as close to a birthing center as possible.
So
what’s the difference between our hustle and bustle to get it all done on a
deadline? What differentiates us from
Mary? She was so full of the presence of
the living God, and as the word says – in his presence there is fullness of Joy,
there is freedom. The wealth of the
kingdom travelled with her because of who she carried. Really, we are no different – but it takes a
choice. It takes a choice to put God
first in our day. It takes a choice to
commune with the Holy Spirit for our strength in the chaos of life. It took a choice to say yes to God to carry
His son, and it take a choice from us to say yes to God daily. When the car repair bills come in, when bills
are due but there’s no money left, when the deadline has come and we’re not
ready – it takes a choice to put your foot forth and trust in the one who wrote
every day of ours before one of them has ever come to pass (Psalms 139). Mary wasn’t without the pain that we face in
life. Even as prophecies rolled in about
their son Jesus, it was told to them that their son would cause them a soul
wound. (Luke 2:34-35)
The
very thing that brought pain to Mary and Joseph brings healing to our
souls. The chasm of pain from lost loved
ones can be filled by Jesus. The peace
from financial turmoil can be found in Jesus.
The rest from the hustle and bustle of life can be found in Jesus. Mary put Jesus first above her own life. What can you do to make him above all the
other things that are calling for your attention? Start by spending time with him – in his
word. We have a benefit available to us that can
never be taken away. Through the Holy
Spirit, the Lord promised that he would never leave us or forget about us. Accessing Him through spending time in his
word, talking with him through prayer, or pressing into his presence in worship
– it’s the only true way that we can be like Mary in a chaotic and busy
life. What a gift we have been given –
to do life with the spirit of the living God within us.
“By this we
know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit” 1 John 4:13
Jesus we praise you for
life that you give us in abundance. Help
me today to not be overwhelmed by the tasks and stresses that work to bog me
down and keep me from the Joy of you.
Show me where I can take more time out to be with you. Help me to rekindle more of a passion for
your word and a great desire for your presence.
Thank you God for your examples of women in the bible that I can glean
so much wisdom from. Help me also God to
cast every single care I have on you and to let it go. In Jesus name Amen
I had fun researching
for this blog – I listed the sites I referred from below – and of course used
the bible for references – Luke 1 and Matthew 1&2
http://www.stephanielandsem.com/2013/12/unwed-and-pregnant/
http://www.catholic.com/blog/tim-staples/when-were-joseph-and-mary-married
