Excuse me - what did you just say?!
Did I just black out? Was that a dream? Did that really just happen? To me?
There’s no way I’ll sleep tonight. Not with those disturbing words ringing in my ears. I’m confused. What could they mean? What’s going to happen next? What is going to change? What if I don’t like those changes?
This is so much to take in. I feel completely overwhelmed. Why would God think I could do this? What does God see in me that makes Him believe I can do this? This is crazy!
I don’t know what God sees in me, but I sure don’t see it! What will happen if I trust what I just heard God speak to me? What will my fiancé say when I tell him what just happened? I’m so scared of the unknown.
What will people think of me? What’s going to happen to me?
God better know what He’s doing. I pray that it happens as He described because it’s hard to see past the many ways this could go wrong both for me and so many people who are important to me.
These are just a few of the things I imagine were going through Mary’s mind when she heard the angel Gabriel tell her that she was going to give birth to the Messiah, though she was a virgin. In Luke’s account of Mary’s conversation with Gabriel, we only read 20 or so words spoken by Mary. There’s a lot left unsaid.
What you just read in italics above isn’t Scripture, it’s my humble attempt to help us step into the heart and mind of a teenage girl unexpectedly learning life changing news.
In Luke 1, we read Gabriel’s announcement to Mary.
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For the word of God will never fail.”
This announcement was a hard left turn in Mary’s plans and expectations for her life. In contrast to our modern world where a generation is growing up hoping to be famous one day, Mary would not have expected fame or notoriety. According to author Kent Hughes, her expectations would have been much different.
“From all indicators, (Mary’s) life would not be extraordinary. She would marry humbly, give birth to numerous poor children, never travel farther than a few miles from home, and one day die like thousands of others before her—a nobody in a nothing town in the middle of nowhere.”
Luke describes Mary’s response to Gabriel’s greeting (“Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”), as “confused and disturbed.” The idea of God knowing her personally and being with her was not a familiar concept - it was a shock and a surprise.
However, when the encounter with Gabriel concludes, Mary chooses to embrace his words. “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”
Reflecting on Mary’s experience and reaction, I’ve drawn two conclusions.
First, God’s interest in and plans for us can be disturbing. We don’t often associate the words “disturbing” and “God’s message” with each other, but I wonder if we had a sense of what God was going to do in and through us on the scale that Mary did if we wouldn’t also be disturbed. Mary wasn’t surprised that the Messiah was coming; it was her role in His coming that surprised her. Mary didn’t see herself as the one to carry the Messiah, and she had questions about how she could carry a child while being a virgin.
If you stepped back and considered the past 10 or 20 years of your life, how would you have reacted if God had shown you all of those twists and turns, highs and lows in one moment? If you had a sense of God being with you as intimately as God was with Mary as described in Luke 1, how would you handle that knowledge? In some ways, I think disturbed is a mild word to describe human emotions in that moment.
Second, the story of Christmas shines a spotlight on our own insecurity. How often do we feel insecure and unconfident when we sense God leading us into a new opportunity that overwhelms us? The truth is that we can respond just as confidently as Mary did. God wasn’t just with Mary; God is with us through the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. Mary isn’t the only one highly favored by God; we have the grace, mercy, and favor of God through the death of Christ on our behalf. God doesn’t just know Mary’s name; God knows your name, too.
Go back and re-read the last paragraph and let those truths sink into your heart. All too often, we go looking for something from other people that we already have in Jesus. Pastor Derwin Gray has written, “If God knowing your name isn’t enough, then the whole world knowing your name will never be enough.”
I relate to Mary’s story because I regularly feel inadequate and insecure in the face of what God is leading me to do. He’s not calling me to be the mother of Jesus, yet my calling feels overwhelming nevertheless.
To face those moments, I’ve developed a habit to battle my insecurity. Whenever I write or sign my name, I pause, close my eyes, and think these words, “God knows my name.” Insecurity is often rooted in what people think about us. But, when our focus shifts to God’s knowledge of and love for us, the reactions and opinions of others fade. As Chris Tomlin and Brandon Lake sing in their song, “I See You,”
“I feel You when the healing comes.
I hear You say, ‘Beloved one,
I am with you.’
Every moment of my life.”
RELATED CONTENT: Chris Tomlin and Brandon Lake Help Listeners Recognize God in Every Moment in “I See You”
As you prepare to celebrate Christmas this year and you consider the experience of Mary within the Christmas story, remember her humanity, her plans, and what her response to a surprising announcement can teach you about security and confidence in the words and plans of God.
Scott Savage is a pastor and a writer with the coolest last name ever. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona. Scott is married to Dani and they are the parents of three “little savages.” He helps hurting people forgive others through his Free to Forgive course and you can read more of his writing at scottsavagelive.com
