Blessed and highly favored
Monday, December 6
Blessed and highly favored
And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” Luke 1:28
The angel told Mary in Luke 1:28 that she was highly favored by God. Imagine that! Out of all the women in all the land, Mary was chosen to carry the promise. She was blessed and favored. This phrase simply meant that Mary had been given much grace or “unmerited favor” from God. What wasn’t included in the promise was the process. Even with God’s favor, Mary would still suffer much.
Although she would be highly honored as the mother of the Savior, she would first taste sadness as her fiancé quickly plans to divorce her. Mary would know disgrace as an unwed mother. Her beloved son, the promise child will soon be rejected and cruelly murdered. Mary’s submission to God’s plan would cost her dearly, yet she was willing to be God’s servant.
The promises of God do not always match up with your present. The favor of God is often complicated. It requires faith and that we shift our focus.
Mary was willing to submit her life to God’s plan no matter what it would cost her. Obedience to the Lord’s will meant Mary would be disgraced as an unwed mother. Surely she expected Joseph to divorce her, or worse yet, he might even have her put to death by stoning (as the law permitted).
Mary may not have considered the full extent of her future suffering. She may not have imagined the pain of watching her beloved child bear the weight of sin and die a terrible death on the cross. But surely she knew that her life would hold many sacrifices as the mother of the Messiah.
Being chosen by God for a high calling requires total commitment and a willingness to sacrifice everything out of love and devotion to one’s Savior.
Prayer for today: Father in heaven, please help me as You teach me how to wait. I don’t find it easy, but I want to learn how to wait well and how to wait in faith. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.