Advent Day 19: Praise As A Way Of Life

My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. -Luke 1:46b-47

Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her! -Luke 1:45

Mary’s Example

Almost immediately after receiving Gabriel’s message, Mary left home to visit her cousin Elizabeth who lived about 60 miles away.  As she traveled Mary had time to think.  She must have wondered if the events of the last few days had been real or if it was all a dream.  When Mary arrived the scriptures tell us that Elizabeth’s baby leaped for joy in her womb.  Elizabeth greeted Mary by saying to her “blessed are you among women,” and called Mary “the mother of my Lord”.

Let’s be honest, Mary must have been confused and wondered what in the world God was doing.  Think about it--- she was a very young girl whose life was suddenly turned upside down.  

Aren’t you glad that God knew we’d need friends and family in our lives? The Christian life was never meant to be lived alone or in isolation – we need each other.  Friends can rejoice with us and cry with us.   A true friend will even tell us when we’re wrong. 

In this case God used Elizabeth as “confirmation” that what had been told to Mary by the angels was truly from Him.  Because they lived so far apart, Mary hadn’t had the opportunity to say anything to Elizabeth about her condition.  Only God could have revealed this to Elizabeth.

Did God have to do this? No. Did Mary appreciate this confirmation?  You bet!  God often puts those little exclamation points in our lives to let us know that it’s really Him talking to us.  I love those times and I’m so grateful for them.

Still everything familiar and comfortable to Mary was suddenly changing.  Have you ever had one of those moments when you just didn’t understand?    I love Mary’s response to this sudden upheaval in her life.  Did she whine?  Lose faith in God?  Wring her hands in worry?  Call all of her friends for advice?  No.  She praised God.  That’s really powerful!

When others might have been prone to question God, Mary simply and beautifully praised Him.  How I’d love for that to be true in my life --- that no matter the situation my first response would be to praise God.

PRAYER:  Lord, I thank You for this special time of year when we celebrate Your birth.  I thank You for Mary’s wonderful example of faith in the midst of confusion.  I confess that too often I worry instead of trusting You.  Your Word tells us that God inhabits the praise of His people.  Help me to make praising You my response in every situation.