The Praise of Mary

Knocking boldly upon the door, Mary offered up a silent prayer that she and the One in her womb would be accepted at the house of her cousin. A virgin becoming pregnant was a thing to be disgraced, and she didn’t know if Elizabeth would let her stay in her home or if she would be thrown out on the streets. Creak, went the door, revealing Elizabeth. Mustering up her courage and drawing strength from the One, true God, Mary greeted her cousin.

Hearing that greeting, Elizabeth went silent. This is a little awkward, thought Mary. What is she thinking? Does she see how big my stomach has grown?

But Elizabeth abated her fears, exclaiming, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.  Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

A few tears sprang to Mary’s eyes, as she heard these words, realizing that not only was she accepted, she was blessed. Oh, the Lord is so good! Her heart was overwhelmed with love for her King, and she could not keep it in.

Bursting into joyful song, she began,

My soul magnifies the Lord,
   And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
   For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
   And holy is His name.
And His mercy is on those who fear Him
   From generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
   He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
   And exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
   And the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
   In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
   To Abraham and to his seed forever.

The Lord led me to memorize these beautiful words of praise this morning, and as I meditated on the words, they became more alive to me.  I decided to share my thoughts with you all as well, that you might be blessed through her life, even as I was blessed. But as I prepared my thoughts, I remembered that I had written about her life over a year ago, and decided to share that again with you while weaving in some of the things the Lord revealed to me this time around.  Mary's story of meekness and praise is so beautiful to behold, and I pray that we might emulate her heart this Christmas season.

Mary was a young girl, a beautiful virgin.  The Lord choose her, of all the millions of women in the world.  Why?  Because she was highly favored and pleasing to the Lord.  He delighted in her, because of her delight in Him.  He was her passion, her stronghold, her dwelling place.  His Word was her refuge, her comforter, her strength.  She knew her Lord in an intimate way, she knew of His character, and she loved Him for it.

God chose to place His only Son inside her, because she would love Him more than her life and treat Him as a King, because of the love that she had shown for the Father.  Her praise floated up to Him on a continual basis.  She was so in love with Him that she couldn’t contain her jubilant praises.

The same was true of her trip to Elizabeth’s house.  Gratitude for God filled her and spilled out in song.  In this song of praise, Mary cited at least fifteen verses in the Old Testament.  She had filled her mind with words from the prophets and psalmists that praised God.  This young peasant girl knew the Scriptures.  She understood the things of the Lord.  She meditated on His Word as she went about her work and as she lay in bed waiting for sleep to come.  Whenever she opened her mouth, God’s Word poured forth, because that is what was in her heart.  

As a result, His words became her language.  

I don't know about you, but compared to Mary's words of praise, mine seem rather weak.  It's not that God rejects "weak" praises, but He does offer us more and deeper things in our worship, if only we will seek Him with all our heart.

Mary knew the Scriptures.  And she knew her Lord.

When she worshiped Him that day, she was not merely thanking Him for what He had done, she was worshiping Him for Who He was.  She had meditated often upon His character and knew intimately the different aspects of His character. And she was only a young teenager!  All we who are still in our youth have no excuse for not memorizing and meditating on God's words so that we might gain a beautiful knowledge of the Lord like Mary had.

Will we too choose to fill our heart and mind with the praises of God?  Will we memorize and meditate on the words of God in such a way that we come to know the Lord in a very intimate and personal?  Will you and I choose to delight in the Lord as Mary did?