Luke 1:26-38 (NIV)
26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34″How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37For nothing is impossible with God.”
38″I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
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Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
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November 8th, 2007 at 8:02 am
Sometimes, I wish that an angel would just come and announce my future for me…or tell me what to do about some issue I am facing. You know, like Mary got.
Except that the angel’s message to Mary certainly did not simplify her life! Sure, she got to be Jesus’ mother and is in the Bible, etc. But for a teenage girl in that time to be faced with the life change the angel Gabriel announced…I don’t think I am all that eager for that kind of angel message! Not to mention all the “how am I going to tell my parents?” initial trauma, she had to ride a donkey a long way when she was nine months pregnant…and that was just the start of a long, 33-year journey of Mary “pondering” all that God was doing through her Son.
Instead of wishing I had an angel messenger telling me what I want to know, Mary’s response to the angel’s message is what I try to keep in my mind as a prayer…”Whatever you want from me, Lord, I am willing.”
November 8th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
Hey Dave,
I read your blog yesterday and it really stuck with me. Fear is a big issue for me. I didn’t have that much fear before I had kids. It was like when I had them I soon started to feel like hey I have to take care of myself because these little babies need me. It was like death wasn’t even in my thought life before. But now I am aware of my possibility and I’ve got to hand that fear over to God. It may sound funny but I was only 19 when I had Charley and I wasn’t really thinking about anything else besides myself and what fun thing Nick and I were going to do that weekend. Now if I let it fear can ruin my day. In the digging deeper when Jesus said “Don’t be afraid” It was almost as if He was saying right to me. I need to remember that, don’t be afraid because God is a loving and giving God. He wants to see me do well. I guess I’m trying to say, that scripture and your blog were exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you for all you do. The neighborhood ladies and I have prayed for your brother and we will continue to keep you and him in our prayers.
Have a blessed day, Amy D.