Skip to main content

Surrender, A Remarkable Journey


 

Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. The virgin will be with child, and will give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.

Isaiah 7:14


Nazareth was a small town, and it was just a matter of time until the “Talk” would make its way to the gathering places. She was young, betrothed, pregnant and unmarried. If that was not enough of a dilemma, her fiancé was not the father of the child she carried.

She was prepared for the whispers in the marketplace, the heckling among the fishermen unloading their boats laden with an early morning catch and the shaming looks of the older, wiser women who were certain she was now worthless.

She had been fortunate as most young girls of this day were not to have been taught the scriptures. She knew the words of the prophet, spoken to the people of Judah so many years before. Though she knew them, never had she considered that she would be the one to fulfill them. Yet here she was. In this moment, was prophecy coming to pass? Was it being fulfilled before her very eyes?

Today, it had come to pass. Though startled by the angel’s appearance, even troubled by the message she kept reliving over and over in her head, there was somehow also a quiet abiding calmness in her presence and a confidence that was unexplainable. As she listened to his words, deep inside her heart of hearts, she knew that this was indeed her calling. How could God the Father have chosen her, a simple, poor, peasant girl to be the instrument that would bring peace to rule and reign in the hearts of men?

She was fully aware of the dangers she placed upon her very life if she accepted His call. At the least, she would become an outcast until the time for the Christ Child to fulfill His purpose and her marriage would be over. At the worst, she would be taken outside the city gates and stoned - possibly to the point of death. Even with these potential life-altering possibilities lurking overhead, she knew she had no choice. It was clear she must pursue God’s plan with her whole heart. Mary, the mother of Jesus, submitted herself to the will of her Father, God during not understanding" why" or "how." It was simple trust and obedience.

To be overshadowed by the almighty and be chosen to fulfill a responsibility of such magnitude as Mary was called to do, we probably cannot relate. From this experience, though the consideration we can ponder is, what would it take for you, or for me to surrender those areas in life that we hold onto so tightly? To quit counting the cost of loss and begin to focus on the relentless pursuit of recognizing God’s call on our lives?

Beware if you choose surrender – it could be radical. It might seem unfathomable, but it will always be remarkable. This season, let us remember the faithful and selfless surrender of Mary. Her submission to God the Father’s plan brought us the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Let us follow her response, " I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Luke 1:36. NIV

And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful

of the humble state of his servant.


From now on all generations will call me blessed,

for the Mighty One has done great things for me--

holy is his name…”

Luke 1:46-49

Bell, Stacia. “Chapter 52 Surrender, A Remarkable Journey.” When the Menu Is Manna New Beginnings, 1st ed., Outskirts Press, 2018, pp. 156–158.


Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!

Popular posts from this blog

The Day I Met Irene

She walked into my classroom at the beginning of the school year with a "don't try to patronize me attitude that was written across her chubby little face." There was a bit of aloof strolling in her step and some deliberate swinging of her less-than-neatly braided pigtails that were nothing short of a mess. I took a deep breath and thought, "I've got my work cut out for me with this one!" It wasn't the first time I had been entrusted with a gift that carried so many hurt disappointments and scars that the resolve was not to let anyone get remotely close to them. Yet even though this was not the first time I had encountered a child like this, each time, it seemed like the first time. How would I reach her? How would I get through to show her potential and, even more so, her worth? The thought of the work this would require making even the tiniest entrance into this child's heart was almost overwhelming. Her hardened emotional shell would be tough to c...
1 comment
Read more

When People Make Life Hard

"Well, are you going just to stand there or do something?" It was my first year of teaching, and I had learned quickly that the cafeteria was a no-talking zone for anyone. Students were expected to enter in silence, eat in the same manner, and exit without a word. So, staring at the horror on the child's face, the disapproval of my principal, and my feet surrounded by the mess on the floor, from the dropped tray, I froze. It didn't appear that either of us would experience any mercy. Sometimes, people just make life hard. It's not a new problem; it's an ancient one. Exodus chapter 5 has much to say about the perils of dealing with difficult people. In this chapter, the Israelites are enslaved people in Egypt under a Pharaoh who is quite a taskmaster and knows nothing about his slaves except that they can make many bricks every single day. Things get pretty ugly when Moses and Aaron are sent to free the Israelites from their bondage. Pharaoh had no intention o...
1 comment
Read more

When Life is Puzzling

  When it comes to puzzles, some people seem to place each piece with ease and confidence. Others… not so much. I fall into the second category. I try, but spatial awareness is not my strength—not even close. Isn’t life like that sometimes? There are seasons when the pieces seem to fall into place effortlessly. And then there are moments when we search endlessly for understanding, turning situations over in our minds, trying to make sense of what feels incomplete. The longer we look for answers, the more frustrating it can become when clarity doesn’t come quickly. When life feels puzzling—when something seems broken, unfinished, or unclear—God’s Word gently offers us a small but powerful word: trust. It’s a simple word, one we hear often, perhaps so often that we underestimate its depth. Yet when applied to our lives, trust has the quiet ability, in God’s timing, to fill the spaces where understanding is missing. This is not an attempt to over-spiritualize life’s difficulties. ...
Post a Comment
Read more