by Pastor Rich Carlson

Gabriel took two trips from heaven to earth in six months. First a visit to Zechariah and Elizabeth and now a second trip to talk with Mary. Gabriel announced pregnancies to first the post-menopausal, and then to the possibly pre-pubic. Indeed, historical evidence and religious tradition suggest that Mary may have been as young as 13 when Gabriel came and told her that she was “highly favored” (verse 28).  
 

I’m amazed as I consider Mary and the fact that this “greatest story ever told” didn’t begin with Jesus—it began with two women, one too old and the other too young. It began with people who were close enough to God that when He presented them with the impossible, they were willing to accept what could not humanly happen. They truly lived their faith, which I do not believe could happen on a whim or without prior dedication in their lives.

One of the most amazing things about a relationship with God is not its predictability, but its surprises. And surprises require faith. To me, faith is the confidence and willingness to step out of my comfort zone into the unknown. However, it is likely we will not step out unless we have first learned to trust the One asking us to.

Mary is identified as a virgin, unmarried, and probably very young. God comes to her and announces, “You’re going to have a baby!”

“How can this be?” she asks. 

God responds, “I’ll take care of that.”

“I’m your servant, Lord. May it be as you have said,” Mary declares.

I don’t know many people who would have that kind of response. But Mary apparently understood that service is more than obligation or subservience. I think she understood it from a faith-trust relationship with her Lord. And that made her the most well-known woman in the history of the world.

With God, all kinds of surprises are possible. And just as surprises take trust, trust takes time to build so that when that surprise moment comes, we will also be able to say, “I am your servant, Lord. May it be as you wish.” That’s the relationship I want for each of us today. Who will be the next unforgettable illustration to this world of God’s amazing power over the impossible?

Rich Carlson is campus chaplain at Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska. “God Is Faithful” is adapted from the email devotionals he writes regularly for the Union College family. Rich enjoys filling his life with God, his family, and especially his five grandchildren.