December 21, 2021

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Luke 1:38 (NIV)

“I’m my own man.”  “You’ve got to look out for number one.”  “No one tells me what to do.  I make my own choices.”  “I take orders from no one.”

These are the words of the fool.  These words are the wisdom of man but the foolishness of God. 

Our world applauds the self-made man.  It cheers the one who overcomes his handicaps.  It idolizes the one who boldly breaks out of the mold of the ordinary to be different.  We don’t need anybody.  “And we don’t need some far-off God trying to impose His will on us!”

This may be the popular wisdom of the day.  But it was not the attitude of Mary.  The message that the Angel delivered to her was not an easy one to hear.  It was even more difficult to accept.  She didn’t even understand everything that was being asked of her.  All she knew was that she could trust God.  And so she surrendered. 

The one who thinks he is strong enough to survive depending only on himself is the weakest of all.  It is in submission that our weakness is made strong.  It is in risking enough to trust that we find the courage to walk boldly.  It is in becoming a slave that we find the freedom to live life more abundantly. It is in surrendering that we win the victory.

It may not win us the admiration of the world, but it will win us a crown of life.