Day 4 – November 30

Day 4 – November 30

“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.”  [Luke 1:30-32 NLT]

Apart from the obvious fear that Mary must have felt from her unexpected visitor, how amazing it must have been for her to hear those words from the angel…”you have found favor with God!”  Wow!  I think it is every child’s desire, whether young or old, to hear their parent’s  affirmations like “Good job!” or “Way to Go!”  And to be honest when my days on earth are done, just the thought of hearing Jesus say to me “Well done, good and faithful servant” reduces me to tears!  God could have chosen any way He wanted to deliver His Son to earth, yet He chose His humble servant, Mary, who was human and, therefore, not perfect.  Yet God knew her heart, saw her faithfulness in the day-to-day things, and knew that with the high honor of being the mother of Jesus would also come great pain.  She would later witness her Son’s rejection, torture, and death on a cross.  Yet He chose her to deliver His hope to this lost and dying world, Jesus!  God knew Mary was not only courageous, but fully devoted to Him.  This was clearly demonstrated in Mary’s humble response to God’s calling in the verses that followed this passage which was so beautiful:  “I am the Lord’s servant…May your word to me be fulfilled.”  

Heavenly Father, I am thankful for examples in the Bible like Mary who demonstrate great faith, trust, and obedience as they answer Your calling for their life.  I am encouraged to know that You choose ordinary, imperfect people to do Your extraordinary will.  Help me to remain faithful in my pursuit of a deeper relationship with You and make me more attuned to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit so that I may promptly and confidently submit to Your will.  This Christmas season, please help me to not be so distracted by the “shiny trappings” of this world that I miss Your plan or purpose for this humble servant.  I pray for opportunities as well as the courage to share the TRUE HOPE and the reason to celebrate this season…the birth of our Savior, the Messiah, the Lord.   Amen.

Written by:  Pam Bos