Mary’s prophetic song
Daily Scripture
Luke 1:46-53
46 Mary said,
“With all my heart I glorify the Lord!
47 In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.
48 He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.
Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored
49 because the mighty one has done great things for me.
Holy is his name.
50 He shows mercy to everyone,
from one generation to the next,
who honors him as God.
51 He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations.
52 He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty-handed.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
When Mary sang that God “has lifted up the lowly,” she was a living example of that. In her culture, women were second-class citizens. No male leader of her day (let alone an angel) would have greeted this woman of almost no status by calling her “favored one” (Luke 1:28). No wonder she exulted in God’s inversion of human values: “He has pulled the powerful down… and lifted up the lowly.” God valued who she really was, no matter what her social status!
- Mary began her song with words of gratitude and praise: “With all my heart I glorify the Lord.” As we move through this season remembering the promises that were a part of the Christmas event, who or what in your life are you thankful for? Which of the promises of Christmas lead you to glorify the Lord with all your heart?
- Mary rejoiced that her child would fulfill God’s promise to bring justice to an unjust world. She echoed the song of Hannah, another “miracle mother,” in 1 Samuel 2:1-10, sure that God was for all people, even the poor and oppressed. She trusted that, in Jesus, God would care for the lowly, hungry, and exploited. In what ways (not just financial) are you “rich”? Are you willing to use your God-given gifts to lift the burdens of those who are lowly in parts of life where you are strong?
The Journey: A Season of Reflections
Today’s Insights blog was chapter 16, “A Most Unnerving Song,” from The Journey: A Season of Reflections, by Adam Hamilton. Copyright © 2011 by Abingdon Press, and available on our website for 24 hours by permission of Abingdon Press. If you’d like to buy the entire book of reflections, you can click here for a direct link to the Cokesbury sale page, as well as other Journey resources.
Prayer
Lord, there’s still so much suffering and injustice in our world. Teach me how to sing “With all my heart I glorify the Lord,” not to deny the darkness, but to defy and challenge it in your power. Amen.
