Faith Like Mary

You know what I love most about truly studying God’s word? No matter how many times I have read or heard the same passage, I ALWAYS realize something new each time.

I started studying the book of Luke as part of my personal Advent study. Due to life being what it is right now, I spent about an hour in it last night, and then revisited it again this evening. 💥And there it was. Something I’d never picked up on before in that chapter.

If you’re unfamiliar with Luke 1, in the first half the angel Gabriel appears to Zechariah to tell him that Elizabeth, his wife, is going to give birth to a son who will prepare the way for the Messiah. Luke tells us that Elizabeth was barren and that she and Zechariah were advanced in years.

The second half is where Gabriel appears to Mary to tell her she is going to carry and give birth to Jesus the Messiah.

The same angel appears to both Zechariah and Mary, he gives them both unbelievable news, and while they both say they believe in and trust God, their responses are drastically different!

Zechariah wants more proof, a sign, to know for sure that what he’s been told will happen because he and Elizabeth are old.

Mary’s response is humble, and despite her confusion on how it can happen since she is a virgin, she is fully trusting and says, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

I’ve often been wowed at the way Zechariah was made mute after his encounter, but what I missed was that it was his punishment for doubting what he was told was going to happen.

How many times have I responded more like Zechariah and less like Mary? Have I made getting to God’s will more complicated and painful because I didn’t trust as I should have and instead was looking for other signs?

My prayer is that I would always seek to respond as Mary, and walk by faith in trust, especially when the outcome seems unbelievable to me.