“(God) has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.” Luke 1:51-55
Heavenly Father, as an adoring Mary prayed this magnificent prayer, little could she have imagined what lay ahead. Nine months later she would experience birth pains in the unlikely shelter of a stable. Thirty-three years would experience heart pains at the foot of her son’s public crucifixion.
But there’s one thing she did understand—there’s at least one thing that she took to heart from her years of growing up in a home of faith. She was taught that you are a God who remembers to be merciful. You have proved, and continue to prove this beyond all doubt.
Father, I’m overflowing with gratitude this morning for your memory and for your mercy. I’ve got a lot of great Christmas memories, but I am most thankful that Christmas is a celebration of what you didn’t and what you’ll never forget. With the gift of Jesus, you remembered all the promises you made to Abraham, and to his descendents… which includes me. I’m humbled and overwhelmed.
You promised Abraham you would take him to a land of your choosing… make of him a great nation… and through that nation, ultimately, bless all the families on the face of the earth (Genesis 12-17). No one could fulfill these promises but you. As surely as you planted Adam and Eve in the paradise of the Garden of Eden, one Day you will plant your whole pan-national family in the greater paradise of the new heaven and new earth.
Like Mary, Abraham could not have begun to imagine how this story of gargantuan generosity would play out. Advent reminds us that, ultimately, every promise you have made finds its “Yes!” in Jesus. Faithful Father, we praise, adore and worship you for your memory and your mercy, but most expressly, for the gift of Jesus.
Indeed, Jesus, you are the fulfillment of all the covenant promises God has made. Because of your faithfulness, from cradle to the cross, we live in the embrace of the Father of mercies, whose mercies are new every morning… including this morning. Because of you, Jesus, the only sign of amnesia in our Father is his commitment never to remember our sins against us. Hallelujah!
What peace… what joy… what hope this brings us today. So very Amen, we pray, with the faith of Abraham, the humility of Mary… in your gracious and loving name.