Advent IV, Tuesday – December 22
(Charlotte Diggs [Lottie] Moon, Missionary in China, 1912)
AM Psalm 66, 67; PM Psalm 116, 117
1 Samuel 2:1b-10; Titus 2:1-10
Luke 1:26-38
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.
When I began the assigned reading, I smiled. The passage, as is the whole Christmas story, has been familiar to me since childhood. As a child just beginning to learn about the world I was born into, it was easy to imagine the angel Gabriel appearing and explaining to Mary what she was going to experience, and why. As an adult it has not been as easy.
I have not had the angel Gabriel appear to me, with wings as in the paintings. But there have been angels. Their message has not been as clear, and sometimes they’re gone before I understand. These angels have not spoken to me with words that I hear. They speak through our hearts. Their message is a message of love, and hope, as was the one that Mary received so long ago.
And there is another lesson here. I have learned that there is much in life that is beyond our control. It is sometimes difficult to understand the why. So it is Mary’s response that also speaks to me as an adult. “…let it be with me according to your word.” Let go, let God. With that, one can truly find peace.
Ernie F.
Heavenly Father, You do send angels to surround us and guide us. Give us hearts to see them so that we may let go of our need to instruct them (and You) and instead trust that Your will for us is more than we can ask or imagine. Amen
