~~~ Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord ~~~
~~~ Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10 ~~~ Psalm 40 ~~~
~~~ Hebrews 10:4-10 ~~~ Luke 1:26-38 ~~~
...Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.
Mary does say, Yes.
She gave not just heart and soul to God;
she gave her whole body.
Have you ever given your mind, soul,
and body to anything?
If you are a mother perhaps you are inclined
to answer in the affirmative.
Mary knew she was a virgin,
how could she give up control
of her body to the invitation of an angel.
God did not send Jesus into the body of a lamb.
Slaughtering an animal could not offer
the mercy of God to mankind.
We as humans needed to be saved by another human.
We needed to be saved by someone who could
understand our sinfulness.
Jesus was without sin, while he took
on the reparation for all sin.
The Annunciation of the Lord
brought Mary into direct and vital
contact with our salvation.
Over time Mary came to a deeper understanding
and acceptance of her roll as the woman
who bore our salvation.
Mary gave birth to our salvation.
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
When Mary spoke these beautiful words of submission
she did not have an insider view of the next
thirty three years of her life.
God gave her unbelievable joy at the Annunciation.
Her joy was great enough to keep alive her desire
to be a lifelong servant of God.
Have you considered God wants
you to also be his life long servant.
Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Doing the will of God keeps us focused
on the reality that he came to dwell among us.
Mary held nothing back from her
submission to the will of God.
We can learn so much from her.
Mary can be a model for how we too can
trust the Lord to take care of us.
We are tempted to hold back part of our life from God.
Mary teaches us that there is no reason for us
to hold back any part of our existence.
We are invited to take the lead from Mary...
to give all of who we are to God.
Blessed to answer with our personal 'yes'.
Thank you, Mary,
for your total commitment to doing
the will of the Lord.
...for being our inspiration to do the same...
~~~Peace~~~
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