You too are a Mary… Chosen to Carry the Son
by: Ann Allen Salter
December 11, 2024
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. ”
Mary’s familiar story in Luke 1:26-38 is not only beautiful but I believe a type of prophetic picture for all of God’s children. To briefly summarize the Bible’s first introduction to her, you can see three main points which speak to us as well: 1) Mary believed God. 2) Mary feared God more than man. 3) Mary willingly and promptly obeyed God. I am always moved and challenged each time I read her response after being frightened by the angel Gabriel who told she would carry and give birth to the Son of God,"I am the Lord’s servant, be it unto me according to your word," (Luke 1:38). Oh, to have a heart and mind like Mary’s. Total submission. No hesitation. No mental gymnastics. Isn’t that a perfect picture of "trust and obey"?
My hopes and intentions are to "be like Mary" in all three of these points stated above, but I fall short way more times than I want to mention. Something must happen between my heart and my head. The Holy Spirit gave me some fresh insight into this just a few days ago while unpacking one of my favorite nativity scenes. Hang in with me for a minute and we’ll get to the spiritual meat, I promise. I remembered the sad fate of Mary’s head in this nativity scene from last year. Although we did not witness the crime, our sly, stealthy, yellow cat "Gnash" (named for the mascot of the Nashville Predators) decided to eat ("steal, kill, and destroy") Mary’s styrofoam head (see photo below).
My son who lives in Nashville (hence our cat’s name) was home for Thanksgiving and his response when I showed him styrofoam Mary was, "Well, Gnash is NOT Catholic!" Humor aside, let me get straight to the serious spiritual points the Holy Spirit is leading me to share. He never wastes anything…not even a damaged nativity scene.
You and I have been called and chosen to carry The Son too—to be a type of Mary in this generation. To carry Him (His Presence) to full-term (in His fullness) will require an unconditional surrender of our hearts and minds. Never forget that our stealthy, sly enemy prowls around like a roaring yellow lion, ready to steal, kill, and destroy God’s purposes and plans for our lives. The battlefield is our minds. This is what our enemy is after—our heads. Victory starts with full surrender followed by a training program called "renewing your mind with the truths of God’s Word." Oswald Chambers says it best, "There is only one thing God wants of us and that is the unconditional surrender of our wills." This of course includes an unconditional surrender of our minds.
I believe there is always more of Jesus for us, and there is always more of us for Jesus. This Christmas season, as I've thought about what my family wants, I’m convicted to think more about what my heavenly Father wants from me. He has my whole heart, that’s the start according to the first commandment, but what about my whole head? He wants us to give Him our whole hearts and minds—to totally surrender our minds to Him and choose to think with the mind of the Spirit, consistently. No more "Gnash decapitations" allowed by entertaining "stinkin’ thinkin’" like doubt, fear, worry, etc. "For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace" (Romans 8:6, emphasis added). What a gift we receive when we choose to be like Mary and carry The Son in our hearts and minds—life and peace. "I am the Lord’s servant, be it unto me according to your word" (Luke 1:38).
Worship: Lift up Your Eyes
Prayer
Father, in the name of Jesus, we thank you for the indescribable gift of Your Son and precious Holy Spirit. Thank you for your holy, infallible Word. We acknowledge that the greatest spiritual warfare is simply obedience to Your Word. We confess as a sin against You choosing to think with the mind of the flesh instead of the mind of the Spirit. Forgive us for not taking every thought captive to your obedience. Forgive us for cracking the door to the enemy by "stinkin' thinkin.'" We surrender (again) our hearts and minds to You. We repent and choose to set our minds on things above; we choose to keep our minds set on the only correct position—PEACE. Thank you that Your peace is a powerful weapon. Thank you for choosing us to be like Mary; may we be found faithful in carrying Your Son in our hearts, minds, and to everywhere You lead this Christmas season and beyond. We love you, Jesus, amen!
Further Study
Romans 8:6, Galatians 5:16-17, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, Colossians 3:2, 1 Corinthians 2:16 , Isaiah 26:3 , Ephesians 2:14, Isaiah 48:18
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Seeking the knowledge of the Lord (the ways, truth, and life) and aligning with His will is our calling as Christians. Reading, studying, partaking in the Word, hearing from fellow believers, dreams and visions, and personal encounters are all ways in which we can come to know the Lord.