And the angel came in unto her, and said,
Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee:
blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying,
Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee:
blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying,
and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary:
for thou hast found favour with God.
And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb,
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary:
for thou hast found favour with God.
And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb,
and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luke 1:28-31
Luke 1:28-31
Jesus' mother Mary faced the ultimate act of courage head on. Can you imagine being approached by an angel, and then given a message that is beyond difficult to comprehend. I think you can read a lot into Mary's response by what she didn't say. Young Mary merely asked:
Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be,
seeing I know not a man? Luke 1:38and the angel responded:
And
the angel answered and said unto her,
The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee,
and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee:
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee
shall be called the Son of God.
The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee,
and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee:
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee
shall be called the Son of God.
And,
behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived
a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her,
who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Luke 1:35-37
a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her,
who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Luke 1:35-37
Now, that's a serious piece of news, all at once.
One of those messages alone would create a shock factor.
A visit by an angel
the fact that Mary is told she is highly favored by the Lord
her barren cousin Elisabeth, well on in years was going to have a child as well
and that she, an unmarried Virgin, will conceive and give birth to the Savior of the world.
Can you just imagine the thoughts swirling around her young mind. She faced not only public ridicule and shame, but death by stoning. Mary's faith was SO strong, and she trusted her Lord SO completely her response to this news was this:
And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord;
be it unto me according to thy word.
And the angel departed from her.
Luke 1:38
In other words, Mary said, let it be unto me as you have said. She accepted what God had given her. Why? Because she knew the promise of God's words to her:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the
Lord,
plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11
plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11
 |
Angels descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
~ Hymn Blessed Assurance
~
|
This verse promises us that God knows YOUR future as well, and He promises that His plans are not to hurt you but to help you. Please join me through this Christmas season by using Mary's faith as an example of perseverance through your own personal trials.
Have a blessed Christmas season. This post is linked to: Walking Redeemed Fellowship Fridays
What Joy is Mine, Hearts for Home Thursday, Encourage One Another,
Word Art Wednesday,
A Sheltering Tree
.
Wasn't it helpful that Mary would have an older, wiser, perhaps more established in faith woman (Cousin Elizabeth) to help her? Just wonderful. God thought of everything and let's not forget Joseph who also showed profound faith and raised the Son of God as his own. Wow. Wow. Wow. The story never gets old.
ReplyDeleteI love your sweet post Abby -- My prayer is that I may be as accepting as Mary of the path my Saviour chooses for me!
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Abby, Thank you for this post today. I needed to read the scripture from Jeremiah 29:11 again. You are a blessing. I love the Victorian angel with all the gold embellishments, it's breath taking. Joyous Wishes, Linda
ReplyDeleteBEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS ABBY! :) For these BEAUTIFUL WORDS AND for the LOVELY IMAGES! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Abby, for this beautiful post. Sometimes, unintentionally, in our denomination and many others, Mary goes a bit unnoticed. As the scripture says, she was favored by God and was chosen to bear his Son, and this is a beautiful thing. Thanks for sharing this today. I always love the wisdom that you post.
ReplyDeleteI so, so love your blog. The images never fail to cheer me.
ReplyDeleteThank you : )
Lesley (Budgeteer)
Beautiful in every respect. STH, mid-coast Maine
ReplyDeleteHi Abby! These images and scriptures are absolutely beautiful. Thank you for sharing them.
ReplyDeleteIs that top picture of your Christmas tree?
Have a beautiful day.
I have often wondered what Mary must have felt and thought of these events. But I am sure through it all she knew the hand of the Lord was upon her. Her faith encourages mine and I can relate to that, because as a Christian I choose to do the same thing, look to the Lord in all areas of my life, even the uncertain ones. Merry Christmas to you. Beautiful images you used too.
ReplyDeleteThis post blessed my heart. Thank you for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteBlessing hugs,
Teresa
Thank you Abby for this devotional - and the encouragement to trust God no matter what we are experiencing.
ReplyDeleteBlessings
Maxine
Thanks for sharing this, Abby. I agree that it's so intriguing to think about what Mary thought and how she felt during this confusion, yet wonderful time in her life. Scary, exciting, wonderful and terrifying all at the same time. Just knowing that the Lord had found favor in her and had chosen her for this awesome task must been SO humbling and incredible....I can only guess how she felt. And she was SO young. I'm sure she wondered if God could have found someone wiser or more mature, but He chose EXACTLY the person He wanted. What an amazing thing to ponder!! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI am always SO blessed to have your lovely art shared in our challenges, and I thank you SO much for this. You are such a blessing to me, and to so many others. May God bless you, my friend.
Karen
Word Art Wednesday
This touched my heart, Abby! So rich and so full of hope!
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you!
It's hard to imagine a young woman hearing those words from the angel. Oh to be found worthy! Your words blessed me, Abby.
ReplyDeleteI've often thought of what Mary would have actually felt. I think it's easy to forget she may not have initially been thrilled to walk such a difficult (socially) path. This was wonderful food for thought! So glad you linked up last Wednesday!
ReplyDelete