Hey, my lovely friends! Welcome back to another “Women of the Bible” post. Today’s post is about a well-known woman of the Bible, one who was in her teens when God chose her for a special task. She is one of my favorite Bible characters and has quite a few attributes to learn from. Her name? Mary of Nazareth. (For more about Mary and her character, check out this article from Lessons from Home. Some of the traits are the same, but Heather highlights several other important ones.)
Who was Mary?
Mary was a young girl in Nazareth, chosen by God to be the mother of His son.
26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
What We Can Learn From Mary
She Obeyed God
The angel’s message to Mary shocked her. How would you react if you were given a life-changing message like that? But Mary didn’t question it, she obeyed.
And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Luke 1:38
How often have you been told something that you wanted to, or did question? My favorite thing about Mary is that she didn’t argue with the angel about how this would change her life or what people would think or why she wasn’t the right girl. No, she was a willing servant of God. This is important for us to keep in mind as Christian girls today. There will be times when God (or other people) asks us to do something that, at the time, won’t make sense. Looking back on it later though, we can often see what God was doing in the situation.
She Had Faith
Mary didn’t know what her life would be like after this. What would change? How would people look at her? I don’t think that’s how she expected her life to go. She was engaged to Joseph, their wedding was probably not far away, and she dreamed of their life together as newlyweds. This announcement from God would take her life in a completely different direction. But Mary was faithful. Look at this verse from Luke 2, after the birth of Jesus:
All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
Acts 1:14
Mary remained faithful throughout her whole life, as shown in this verse from after Jesus ascended into heaven. Yes, her life was hard at times. I can’t imagine what it’s like seeing your son dying in front of your very eyes. But Mary believed in God’s plan and had faith that He was working. In our own lives, we can also choose to have faith even in the uncertainties and doubts we face.
She Was Humble
Being chosen to be the mother of God’s son is a big honor. A hard honor, yes, but still a great one. You might think that Mary would be telling everyone about it. She would be soaking in all the attention that raising the Savior of the world would bring her. But Mary wasn’t that kind of girl. Take a look at this verse from later in Luke, right after Jesus’ birth.
But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19
Mary quietly considered all of the things she’d heard and been told, pondering them for herself. Pondering means “thinking over something carefully,” the opposite of talking about it with everyone you know. Humility is a hard virtue to practice, but it’s an important one. Mary also demonstrated humility when she visited her cousin Elizabeth and sang her famous song of praise to God. Humility is living a life without pride or arrogance. Mary is an excellent example of what humility in Christian girls should look like.
Go Live It
What is something God is telling you right now?
In what area of your life do you need to have faith?
How can you practice humility this week?
