Mary

Whistle a Happy Tune - The King and I

Luke 1:26-56

Mary is a young girl from the town of Nazareth. Nazareth was a small town; a VERY small town. Which is why the future disciple Nathaniel’s reaction when he first heard where Jesus was from said: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” -John 1:46

It’s basically the place you drive through to get to somewhere else. It is not where anyone of significance was from. And yet that is where God selected the mother of his Son. When the angel Gabriel visits Mary, he says “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” And then explains how she will give birth to the Son of the Most High. Mary doesn’t say - No Way! She doesn’t say you’ve got the wrong girl! or wait til I tell my sister that I am the highly favored one. No, her response is one of total submission - “may it be to me as you have said.” And then she went to Elizabeth as the angel instructed. Upon seeing Elizabeth she gives the Magnificat, better known as Mary’s song:

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;

For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.

For He who is mighty has done great things for me,

And holy is His name.

And His mercy is on those who fear Him

From generation to generation.

He has shown strength with His arm;

He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones,

And exalted the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,

And the rich He has sent away empty.

He has helped His servant Israel,

In remembrance of His mercy,

As He spoke to our fathers,

To Abraham and to his seed forever.” Luke 1:46-55

I think I am safe to say that there is very little chance that this would be my reaction as an adult. Much less as a teenage girl, who was scared and not sure how Joseph, her parents, family or friends would react. But she did and the world was never the same.

So what are you scared of? There is a lot in the world right now to be scared of and a lot of pressure that people are under. The pandemic by itself is enough, but with it comes a lot of questions about the future. Without the pandemic, we still have to face a lot of pressures and decisions in everyday life, many of which can be overwhelming.

Change is one of the scariest things for me because it usually means the unknown. Since I like to control things and plan, this is problematic for new situations. But it doesn’t mean I don’t do them.

So what do we do? Prayer is the first thing. Pray for guidance and for help to ease your fear. Then go do it. I love Whistle A Happy Tune not because it says life is great or because it says I’m so brave look at this. No Anna says fake it til you make it. I know she sings it much more eloquently but still:

Whenever I feel afraid

I hold my head erect

And whistle a happy tune

So no one will suspect, I'm afraid

Mary must have been terrified but the Lord saw her through. So whatever we are scared of - pray and then go hold your head high and DO IT!

Reflection Notes:

1. What are you afraid of or scared to do?

2. How can Mary’s story help you with this?

3. Today is the day - say a prayer (even recite Mary’s song if you would like) and then hold your head high and GO FOR IT!