Mary: A Life of Praise

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 digrased, so she didn’t know if Elizabeth would let her stay in her house, or if she would be thrown on the streets. Creek, went the door, revealing Elizabeth. Mustering up her courage, drawing strength from the One, true God, Mary greeted her cousin warmly.

Hearing that greeting Elizabeth went silent. This is a little awkward, thought Mary. What must be going through her head? Does she see the lump in my stomach?

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 tear sprang to Mary’s eye, realizing that not only was she accepted, she was blessed. Oh, the Lord is so good! Her heart 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.

Mary, 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 for 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 knew that placing His Son inside of her was wise, 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.  These became her language.  Whenever she opened her mouth, God’s Word poured forth.  And it was these words, purposefully hid in her heart that helped her to live out God’s plan for her to become Jesus’ mother.

Will you too choose to fill your heart and mind with the praises of God?  Will you meditate on the words of God in such a way that your soul can't contain your joy for the Lord?  Will you choose to delight in the Lord as Mary did?