Most Insightful God, You do nothing by chance and without a plan. You have said in Your Word that You have blessed me, because of accepting Your Son as my Lord, with the benefits of that decision. This includes my salvation, becoming an adopted child, forgiveness of my sins, insights into spiritual things, the power to do Your will and the hope of living triumphantly through Jesus. Through my surrender to Him, I enjoy all these blessing today, in this life. These blessings come from the spiritual realm and not the earthly one. You go further in Your Word to say that You have chosen me through Him to emphasize that salvation totally depends on You. I am not saved because I deserve it but because You are gracious and full of love in granting me the opportunity to establish a lasting relationship with You. I am saved, not because of my abilities or talents, but in accordance with Your plan.
This brings me to the fact that You know all things and have provisions to counter my every downfall. As sure as Adam and Eve became vessels by which sin entered the world, through the “virgin” Mary, she became the vessel for sending the One who would redeem me from the power of sin and give me a heavenly home. In Your great knowledge, You selected Mary as the mother of Your Son. She was picked from the beginning to become Your instrument from which would come the deliverance of mankind … the Savior. As the apple would become the symbol of sin and eternal death, the cross has become the hope of eternal life. Mary displayed extreme courage and selflessness in accepting Your role for her in Your Kingdom. Mary was a young, poor, female which would make her seemingly unfit to fulfill such a major task. But You chose her for her humility and complete submission to Your will.
I should never limit Your choice of me for whatever purpose You choose regardless of whether I feel qualified or not. Your favor and choosing does not automatically lead to my being successful. Much suffering and pain would come to Mary as she saw her son rejected and murdered. The hope she held within was the hope that through Jesus would come the whole world’s hope. By accepting Your call on her life, she has been praised by countless generations as the young woman who “found favor with God.” Her submission was a key part of Your plan to save man from himself. If sorrow weighs me down and dims my hope, I need to think of Mary and wait patiently for You to finish working out Your plan. I, like Mary, might sometimes need Your encouragement to “not be afraid.” What You want from me is to say “I am Your servant. May it be done to me as You have said.” And it’s in Jesus’ name I pray. AMEN!!
Luke 1:38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be done to me as You have said.”