In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him 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 ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to 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 holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her. Luke 1:26-38
I often wonder how I would react if a daughter of mine came and told me of having this experience. Mary was young and vulnerable, full of hopes and dreams for the future. In her time, Mary was of little value, except as a wife and a bearer of children. She was not royalty, not an "influencer" or anything noteworthy in particular. God chose her, a frightened teen, to bear the Savior of the world. A nobody becomes the revered mother of God. And today, we remember this moment, when God chose the least, a person like all of us, to carry the Christ child. Mary said yes and may we too say yes to our Creator every morning.
Wondrous Creator, you chose Mary to bear Jesus
a young woman of no status and no big name
to bring our Lord into the midst of humble humans.
We act for fame and glory and fail to see
that we too can carry Jesus' love into the world
yet we spend our time scheming and scraping.
Help us to honor Mary's yes by serving others
carrying Your love into our fractured world
living humbly and selfless as Mary before us. Amen.
