What kind of winter are you having right now? With COVID and the political chaos, many are in a very long difficult winter. During this season we hear inescapable Christmas music and carols everywhere on TV, radio, and depending on where you live, stores. Some don’t feel like singing along.
Most of us sing when things are going great, but what if they’re not, can we still sing?
The lowly peasant girl Mary had an amazing miraculous visitation from the angel Gabriel declaring that she will give birth to the Son of God conceived by the Holy Spirit. While that was extremely good news for Israel, Mary was “greatly troubled” with the announcement. It was more like utterly overwhelmed! We’ve all felt like that before. COVID has turned things upside down inside and out.
Imagine Mary thinking, “My parents are going to kill me when I tell them I’m pregnant.” Can you imagine the response of Mary’s parents when they asked her who was the father and she told them the Holy Spirit? “What, excuse me, come again, repeat that?” When the news hits her home town it will get even more painful for Mary.
Mary endured harsh criticism, accusations, slurs, and incessant whispering from her friends and neighbors. Yet, Mary breaks into a celebrative song after Gabriel’s announcement. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Luke 1:46-47 Notice that Mary celebrated before the fulfillment of God’s promise.
Mary could sing in the midst of turmoil because she knew that God had the desire and the power (Is.40:25-26; Col.1:16-17) to see her through her circumstances and she understood his amazing grace.
In the midst of your winter of discontent who or what is your resource?
Perhaps you think that God is unaware or detached from your life story? In the midst of national discouragement, the prophet Isaiah comforted Israel with these words:
Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Isaiah 40:27-29
Before Mary breaks into her song (Luke 1:46-55) she asked Gabriel, “How will this be since I am a virgin?” Gabriel told her, “For nothing is impossible with God.” What was Mary’s response? “May it be as you have said?”
Can you hear Mary’s surrender to the will of God? Whatever you say, Lord, whatever you desire, that’s what I want. She let go of that which she could not control. That’s hard, isn’t it? Can you? Will you?
Maybe you think you got to straighten things out on your own, especially if you’ve messed things up? I’m going to get myself out of this somehow. I’ll figure it out on my own. I think I have control. Maybe I’m hesitant to come to God because I’m not sure if He cares or can really do anything about my situation? Yet, He wants us to come to Him.
God wants us to be honest with who we are and who He is
He wants us to realize that we are dependent upon His grace and ability to do for us what we cannot do on our own. “God designed us to run on Him! He is the fuel our spirits are designed to burn.” John Eldredge
Mary freely admitted (Luke 1:48) she needed God’s power and grace. She could say, “I need you, God.” She could sing in the midst of her winter. You can too! Like Mary, you can say to God, “I need you, God.” Pray and ask God that He will enable you to say and mean that with your heart and soul.
