38 Days until Easter

38 Days until Easter
As I prepare my heart for Easter by looking back at the birth and life of Christ on earth, I feel drawn to stop for a moment to think about His mother, Mary.  I think that much of the time I just focus on the fact that God favored her and as a virgin she conceived the Son of God. But Mary was more than a virgin who gave birth to Jesus, she was a mother.  And she did the things that mothers do. She gave of herself to care for her child. If I take the time to look at more than the virgin birth, I think there’s much to learn from her as a mother.
Something clicked with me when I read Mary’s response to Gabriel when he came to deliver the news that she had been chosen to conceive the Son of the Highest.  She responded with submission. Mary who found favor with God. A highly favored one. One who was blessed among women, was submissive. She didn’t brag and she was never boastful.  She was absolutely content in humble submission.


    “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word”. -Luke 1:38
Not only is Mary submissive, she has an unbelievable faith and profound trust in God. Here we have a teenage girl who’s engaged to be married in a society that stones girls to death for becoming pregnant before marriage.  And her reaction is to submit. This tells me that her faith in God is so much greater than her fear of death. That is an immensely deep faith.


Mary was submissive to her calling.  I know that when Joseph was told to escape to Egypt to flee from Harod, she listened and she went.  When Joseph was told that they could return to Israel, Mary listened and she followed.


Thank goodness I don’t have to live in a culture that stones a girl for getting pregnant before marriage, but today’s culture has its own challenges.  And being submissive isn’t quite the popular thing to be. Being submissive is misunderstood in today’s society. Jesus was raised by a mother who yielded to the Spirit.  What might happen in my home if I continually yielded to the Spirit? Well, I know what happened in Mary’s home. Jesus grew to become strong and wise and full of God’s grace.  
When Jesus was 12 he amazed scholars with his wisdom of scripture.  I can just imagine the studies He had with Mary as a child. I can imagine Him listening to her pray, listening to her sing, listening to her recite scripture.  
Mary is a wonderful model for mothers.  She’s a wonderful model for me. I can certainly learn from her.  My children should be immersed in scripture. They should hear me pray.  They should witness me in praise. They should hear me recite scripture. They should see me live out scripture. They should see me serve. They should see me give. And they most certainly should feel the love of a mama who could not be more content in humble submission by yielding to the Spirit.

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