December 18 Devotion

Song of Joy

Luke 1:46 - 55

And Mary said,

"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;

He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy,

According to the promise he made to our ancestors,

To Abraham and to his descendants forever.

How she must have danced, the traveler thought. How the mother of the baby must have danced when her cousin Elizabeth affirmed the new life within both their wombs. Her song rings down the ages with the freshness and authority of a long-awaited covenant promise. All those sacrifices from ancient days, all the struggles to obey and serve God. All the treks across wilderness after wilderness for Abraham, Isaac, Joseph, come to fruition. Mary's praise of joy expresses the culmination of them all, a new beginning for humankind, and for herself, a new song to sing.

No more waiting, the Christ would become the fulfillment of those ancient promises to Israel. A Messiah, a Savior whose coming turns things upside down (which, according to God’s wisdom, is really the right way up). The Christ would bring satisfaction for the poor, authority for those without status. Pride, riches, all go to the wall, as a new set of godly priorities takes precedence over previously held sinful and destructive values.

No wonder Mary sang this wonderful song. But for it all to come about, the young girl had to say "yes." She had to trust the heavenly vision and agree to the angel Gabriel's message. The Bible recounts how he did not depart from her until after she had agreed that it would be as God had said. We might imagine the angel bursting through the gates of heaven shouting for joy, "She said 'yes'!"

What might have happened if Mary had refused? God, loving and tender as God is, would not have forced the vision, the Lord never does. Oh, God could have found another way to birth the son and bring about the divine purposes for the world. God always can. But, Mary, what a tragedy, if she had missed out on the cooperation with that divine will.

To learn to sing in our hearts, to feel the joy of the dance of the soul, to embrace the pain that pierces our hearts also, is always our choice. The vision is God's, the choice is ours.

The traveler stayed kneeling a long time, considering again the practical implications of bringing the baby home. The difficult struggle to explain what had happened, to those who had been absent from her experience in the stable. The obstacles of the pressures at home, the duties demanding her time, the daily boredom and frustrations of each day's routine tasks. The baby's eyes still shone bright in her memory but when the memory lost its luster, the channel of prayer got blocked with exhaustion, and her home surroundings screamed rational, software-technological logic through the computer screen and onto her fingerprints, what then? When everything else is trapped in the virtual, what becomes the reality? Could she carry on singing that new song?

Would the tune fade, the lyrics get confused, or deafened out by million other tunes along the way? She would not let that happen. God would provide strength. She would be faithful. God would do the rest.

It was only a few days into the new year and already the problems of the old were encroaching. She needed to keep singing regardless of the outer circumstances that surrounded her journey and dogged her path. What better song to sing than Mary's --- magnifying God more than contemplating her own situation, letting her spirit rejoice rather than dwelling on the negatives; recognizing where she stood in God's sight and God's affection; acknowledging the gratitude she owed to the Lord. Acknowledging God's holiness; God's mercy; God's strength; God's overall control in every circumstance; God's priority for the underdog, the needy; God's perfect sense of justice; God's faithfulness toward the covenant people. When we do all this it is as if we hear God speak our name and whisper, "Happy New Year."

God, I hear it. Just as Mary heard your words that day, I hear your earth-shattering, wonder-filled music of gentle joy and promise. Show me no proof, give me no sign, except for your own presence in me and with me forever. And may I dance daily to your Song of Joy. Amen.

Amy Inghram