In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

 "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"

 The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."

 "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.

~Luke 1:26 – 38~

Mary is a character in the Nativity story that I seem to understand the least. As a woman I should be able to relate to her.

First of all, she seems very mature for her age. Historically speaking she was probably a young teenager. When a girl reached an age where she was able to have children, she was married off. I completely understand this. Children were expensive to support, and childbirth was dangerous. A family married off daughters to avoid another mouth to feed. Economically speaking, if you waited till your daughter was 18 to marry, and she died in childbirth, you have just lost a dowry and those 5 years of food to feed your daughter. The earlier you marry them off, you still pay a dowry, but over the long term, there is a savings.*

Even though, Mary was a good 12 years younger than I am now, I have to believe that she was emotionally eons ahead of me. Compared to today’s options, life for Mary was limited. Life for everyone was limited. From a young age she would have learned to cook and clean, to mend clothes, and perform chores. The expectation to bear children, was perhaps similar to the expectation my parents had for me to attend college. Little Israelite girls grow up hearing that they could be whatever they wanted to be. No wonder I needed to go through 17 years of schooling. When the options are relatively limitless, it takes forever to decide what you want to be. And then there is the whole issue of finding yourself. Had Mary told her parents she was taking a year off to travel and “find herself” they would have thought her crazy. Life was not a blank sheet of paper. It was a very short map from birth to marriage to death.

This is the first reason I don’t connect with Mary. I get lost in the historical context. I want to say that Mary, very early, accepted the life she was expected to live; as if she had other choices and embracing this one was a last resort. I can’t put myself in her shoes and unlearn life the way it’s lived today.

The second reason I have trouble relating to Mary is the fact that she lets God disrupt her life.** So Gabriel comes to Mary and says that she’s been found favorable in the sight of God. Awesome! What does Mary win?? Shame, embarrassment, dishonor, disrespect, loss of family, loss of status, loss of love. She knew what an out of wedlock pregnancy meant. She knew no one would believe that the Holy Spirit of God had impregnated her. But what does she say? “I am the Lord's servant. May it be to me as you have said.”

Come screw up my life God. Not only will I unlock the door, but I’ll open the door and keep the kettle on!

I’m not criticizing Mary. Without her obedience and courage, we might still be waiting for the Savior. What I struggle with, and what Mary reminds me of, is that great faith will be greatly rewarded.

I have to believe that Mary had faith large enough to conquer the shame of her pregnancy; faith large enough to hope in God’s plan. She could say “May it be” because she knew that God would see her through. Jesus doesn’t promise that following Him will be easy. But asks that we have faith to see the bigger picture.

Mary had a faith that I can only hope to possess. And the greatness of her faith granted her immense blessings. As painful as it may have been to see her son crucified, there must have been great pride in her heart. “That’s my son! God has blessed me with the opportunity to be his mother!”

Jesus, screw up my life. Screw up my life so much that all I can see is you glorified. I have faith in your salvation and your purpose.

* I realize this is an incredibly sexist and commercial way of thinking. Unfortunately it’s the way the world was and in a way still is. Economics will always influence the decisions we make. It all depends on how we look at the data. Sorry for bringing commerce into the story of Jesus. I’m an economics minor. What can I say??

** Understandably, God would do what He wanted to do. I don’t say this to suppose that Mary could have changed the plans of God by declining the role of “Virgin Mother and Social Outcast Extraordinaire.” I simply mean that I have trouble wrapping my mind around her response to God.