I remember a day in the middle of November when I decided to turn on my Christmas music. Ryan jokingly questioned, “Christmas music before Thanksgiving?!” I’m not usually someone who skips Thanksgiving and heads straight for Christmas but this year I started festivities early! During this Christmas season my mind has churned over Mary’s response to the angel Gabriel’s message. “‘And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.’ And Mary said to the angel, ‘How will this be, since I am a virgin?’ And the angel answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.’ And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’” (Luke 1: 31, 34, 35, 38a). When Zachariah questioned what the angel told him regarding the child his wife Elizabeth would bear, he had almost the same reaction as Mary however he was struck mute until not only the child was born, but his name revealed as John. In Mary’s case, instead of rebuke, she received reassurance.
Did Mary really consider that she was talking with an angel? Did she give any thought to how her life would change? Did she think about Joseph’s reaction and perhaps that of her parents and friends? “When… Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly” (Luke 1:18b-19). Considering what Joseph was debating about doing he either didn’t believe that the child was really from God or Mary hadn’t told him. How could Mary manage to break that news? “Hey honey… I’m pregnant, and the baby is from God!” Nowadays that would sound crazy and honestly it probably did back then too. After the angel visit, Mary left to visit Elizabeth who prophesized when she saw Mary, and Mary gave a beautiful testimony about how much God had blessed her (Luke 1:39-55). But even after that, I still wonder how was Mary handling all this? In this society, having intercourse outside of marriage paved the way to the grave. In accepting the angel’s message, Mary made a decision that could threaten her life and reputation. Even though Mary knew what she was going through was from God, that would not necessarily prevent her from feeling anxious and possibly even embarrassment when her husband to be thought she was not faithful. Talk about emotional turmoil! Thankfully God sent Joseph a dream explaining the situation. What a relief to Mary that Joseph was finally on the same page. Regardless of what would happen to her or what people might think, Mary trusted that God’s plan would be fulfilled in her life.
In going through my Christmas music, I found a version of the song Mary Did You Know that is all a capella (any instrument sounds you might hear are also made with only vocals). Here is a link if you’d like to hear it: https://youtu.be/ifCWN5pJGIE. According to Wikipedia, the lyrics where written by Mark Lowry in 1984. In an interview Lowry said, “I just tried to put into words the unfathomable.” What a powerful description of what must have been going through Mary’s mind. Can any of us really and truly grasp the importance and awesomeness of Jesus being born here on Earth? I do not know if I could be as strong as Mary. I’m sure if someone had asked her beforehand that she too would have denied her ability to fulfill the mission. When you are faced with difficult situations, just remember that even Mary questioned how God would fulfill one of the greatest miracles. Mary didn’t know how it would all work out. Mary didn’t know a lot of things but what she did know was that doing the will of God was the goal of her life. I pray that whatever the Lord directs in our lives, even if we don’t have all the answers, that we too might draw strength through Jesus to say, “I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”