Thank You, Mary

When Mary said to the angel Gabriel, "May it be to me as you have said," she had little idea of the impact of her words. God had caesar Augustus issue a degree that affected the entire Roman world. Micah 5:2 prophesied that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, and Mary was about to give birth in Nazareth. So to obey the decree, Mary and Joseph must travel to Bethlehem for the census.

This 90-mile journey would not have been easy for any couple, but for Mary, the trip must have been extremely exhausting. Much of of the terrain was hilly and the journey would have taken at least five days. Often that area was rainy and cold-about 30 degrees. Plus, the heavily forested Jordan valley had lions, bears and other wild animals they may have had to fend off.

Mary and Joseph would have usually stayed with family or friends, but because of the overcrowding in Jerusalem, they would have been forced to seek shelter in an inn. Those were full, too. So the stable they stayed in was likely a cave used for housing animals.

But for Mary, the embarrassment of being pregnant before marriage was surely more difficult to bear than the trip. She could not explain to others why she was obviously with child. She would just have to quietly bear the reproach.

So when Mary went to see Elizabeth and finally had someone who would rejoice in her miracle pregnancy, Mary was suddenly overwhelmed. Overcome with the wonder of carrying the Messiah, she began to jubilantly exclaim: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God....From now on all generations will call me blessed...." Her name would not always be tarnished. Giving birth to the Messiah was the dream of every girl in Israel. She was indeed blessed!

Dear Father, no matter what You ask of us, it is always safe to say, "May it be to me as you have said."

"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" (Luke 1:45).