Read: Luke 1:46-56
"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name."
Luke 1:41-42
Have you ever spent a day (or maybe several days) of your prayer focus by just thanking God for all He has done for you? Try it sometime! When I do this, I find that I am overwhelmed with so many blessings from the Lord. Things and situations I never really thought of as a blessing, appear in new ways to me. For example, on one occasion, as strange as it may sound, I thanked the Lord for allowing me to have a chronic disease. My thought was: this disease, as nasty as it is, has been used by God to humble me, so that I am closer to God now because of it.
In Luke 1:46-56, Mary thanks the Lord for blessing her “humble estate” by doing “great things” for her. The first part of the song Mary gives thanks to God. Then (in a psalm-like way) she tells what He has done to deserve such thanksgiving. Mary understands that through this Christ-child, all nations will call her “blessed.” Why? We call Mary blessed not because of who she is, but because of who she mothered. She is the mother of our Lord. The child within her is the Creator and Savior of the world. Can you imagine such an honor? I doubt Mary could nuance the theological significance of what was happening, but she knew that this child was no mere human baby. And that she had been chosen to carry, birth, and care for the Savior.
The majority of the song emphasizes that God chose a nobody, Mary, to do something great. Mary stresses God’s “mercy” upon her, His “strength” in “scattering the proud,” and exalting those of “humble estate” while bringing low the “mighty.” Mary’s humble and gentle heart pours from the song like honey from the comb. She recognizes the privilege she has been given is a work of God, not an accomplishment of man. And this work is something that will impact all generations to come.
No one will ever be blessed in the same manner Mary was–that was a one time role. However, if you were to stop and think of all the ways God has blessed you, I dare say you would be in awe of God’s gracious hand upon you. In our fallen, sinful state, it is so easy to focus on the negative and the scary; however, if we force ourselves, we will see that the blessings of our lives far outweigh the negative.
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Prayer: Thank you, Holy Spirit, for opening my eyes to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray that you open the heart and mind of [insert the name of a lost friend or family here]. May they come to understand the glorious joy and peace found only in Jesus Christ. Amen!