Christmas Reflections – Mary

“Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.” _{Luke 1:45}

I cannot even begin to imagine what thoughts and emotions were swirling around Mary when an angel came and stood before her with a message from the Lord God. The angel, Gabriel, greets her with the words that she is favoured by God. Mary tries to makes sense of the words that she is hearing but it is too incredible to truly comprehend.

The Jewish people had been waiting over 700 years for their Saviour to come. The prophecy would have been handed down the generation and it would have been known, if not completely believed, that Immanuel would be born in Bethlehem. Mary wasn’t from Bethlehem, she was from Nazareth, and although she could trace her roots back to king David via his son Nathan, she was, in her time, just an ordinary girl. Now, here she was, singled out from all other women and chosen by God to be the mother of the Messiah.

“You shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (v31-33)

At the end of this amazing conversation, Mary’s heart and mind are at peace. She bows to the plan and purpose of God for her life and says, “I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

Each one of us are chosen for God’s own purpose and plan. May we bow to his will, acknowledge that we are his servants and live according to his word.