what if I were Mary

This week's daily devotionals centered around Mary.  It made me wonder, what if I were Mary?

In Luke 1:36-38, Mary says, "Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord.  May it be done to me according to your word."

The commentary stated that Mary didn't say, "'This is wonderful.  Of course, I'll do it."  Instead she was saying, 'This isn't what I had planned, and I'm not sure I understand, but I"ll do my best to do what the Lord wants.'"

Do I believe this?  Can I truly say I am a handmaid of the Lord?

Simply accepting that things happen and I cannot control everything is such a huge deal for me.  One of the purposes for my journey is to let God direct my life, rather than feeling responsible for everything that comes my way.

The narrative continues with the greeting of Elizabeth and Mary.  These cousins are both pregnant with the seed from God.  In this passage, Elizabeth speaks the first beatitude in Luke's Gospel "Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."  

According to research, the Greek word "blessed" means "inner happiness."  Mary is happy - she said, "yes," to God and trusted that he would lead her to peace.  I am very touched by her genuine trust and love of the Lord.  Do I have that same trust?

I also was fascinated to learn that a church in the village of En Karem (Church of the Visitation) has the Magnificat written in 41 languages on ceramic plaques.  What is the Magnificat?  I also wondered.  So I looked it up.

The Magnificat is from Luke 1:46-55.  It is a beautiful song that Mary sings to Elizabeth, her cousin.  Here is the English translation of the Magnificat:

My soul doth magnify the Lord.

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid;

for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

Because he that is mighty,

hath done great things to me;

and holy is his name.

And his mercy is from generation unto generations,

to them that fear him.

He hath shewed might in his arm:

he hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.

He hath put down the mighty from their seat,

and hath exalted the humble.

He hath filled the hungry with good things;

and the rich he hath sent empty away.

He hath received Israel his servant,

being mindful of his mercy:

As he spoke to our fathers,

to Abraham and to his seed for ever.

Maybe the reason I didn't know about the Magnificat is because I'm not Catholic.  But once I read the words, I knew they would have been set to song.  And I wasn't disappointed.

As I conclude this blog entry, I will simply state that I want to believe in Jesus's other name: Emmanuel.  Emmanuel, which means God with us.  Do I feel His constant presence?  Or at this time of year am I more concerned with the presents?