1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:12,680 Speaker 1: Life audio welcomes to the Crosswalk devotional. 2 00:00:13,280 --> 00:00:16,759 Speaker 2: We're glad to have you listening with us. Today's topic 3 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:20,759 Speaker 2: is about how Mary's Surrender teaches us to trust. We'll 4 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:36,040 Speaker 2: return with the devotional after brief message from our sponsors. 5 00:00:36,880 --> 00:00:40,560 Speaker 2: How Mary's Surrender teaches Us to Trust? Written and read 6 00:00:40,600 --> 00:00:42,120 Speaker 2: by Hannah Benson. 7 00:00:43,159 --> 00:00:45,800 Speaker 3: Luke Won through forty nine ESB. 8 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:49,879 Speaker 2: And Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord, and my 9 00:00:50,080 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 2: spirit rejoices in God, my Savior, for he has looked 10 00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:56,840 Speaker 2: on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from 11 00:00:56,880 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 2: now on, all generations will call me blessed, for he 12 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:03,480 Speaker 2: as Mighty, has done great things for me, And wholly 13 00:01:03,720 --> 00:01:04,480 Speaker 2: is his name. 14 00:01:05,520 --> 00:01:06,280 Speaker 4: Have we ever. 15 00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:08,360 Speaker 2: Stopped to consider how Mary may have felt when the 16 00:01:08,360 --> 00:01:11,880 Speaker 2: angel Gabriel visited her. She was just a young girl, 17 00:01:12,480 --> 00:01:16,160 Speaker 2: newly betrothed to Joseph. While the Bible doesn't share with 18 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:18,880 Speaker 2: us her exact age, scholars speculate she may have been 19 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:22,679 Speaker 2: as young as fourteen. Now consider the fear that likely 20 00:01:22,760 --> 00:01:25,440 Speaker 2: coursed through her veins when Gabriel delivered the news that she, 21 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:27,280 Speaker 2: an unmarried virgin. 22 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:27,800 Speaker 3: Would bear a son. 23 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:34,000 Speaker 2: How scandalous perhaps questions ravaged through her mind, what would 24 00:01:34,040 --> 00:01:36,560 Speaker 2: people think? No one would believe her if she told 25 00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:39,640 Speaker 2: them the truth with a pregnancy outside of marriage, the 26 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:44,200 Speaker 2: tonespeople would stone her, and Joseph would he believe her? 27 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 2: If he didn't, surely he'd feel betrayed. Instead of arguing 28 00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:52,080 Speaker 2: or begging the Lord to choose someone else, Mary simply asked, 29 00:01:52,800 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 2: how will this be since I'm a virgin verse thirty four. 30 00:01:57,400 --> 00:01:59,559 Speaker 2: Though the plan didn't make sense to her, she chose 31 00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 2: to swallow her fears hard. As Luke writes in verse 32 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:07,120 Speaker 2: thirty eight, Mary humbly responds, behold, I'm the servant of 33 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:10,440 Speaker 2: the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word, 34 00:02:11,040 --> 00:02:14,920 Speaker 2: and the angel departed from her. Sometimes I wonder if 35 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:17,120 Speaker 2: Mary knew the full implication of what she was saying 36 00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:21,200 Speaker 2: yes to. Surely the possibility of public shame and stone 37 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 2: and crossed her mind. But whether she understood the full 38 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:27,640 Speaker 2: danger or not, Mary surrendered her future as Joseph's wife, 39 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:31,800 Speaker 2: her reputation, and even her life to the Lord. Despite 40 00:02:31,800 --> 00:02:34,840 Speaker 2: the danger, she chose to sing the praises of the Lord, saying, 41 00:02:34,919 --> 00:02:38,639 Speaker 2: my soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, 42 00:02:38,760 --> 00:02:43,160 Speaker 2: my Savior verse forty seven. The magnificat, as it's often called, 43 00:02:43,240 --> 00:02:45,280 Speaker 2: is the cry of Mary's heart as she soaked in 44 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:48,160 Speaker 2: the goodness of God and shared how He who is 45 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 2: mighty has done great things for me, and holy is 46 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:52,959 Speaker 2: his name Verse forty nine. 47 00:02:53,919 --> 00:02:55,240 Speaker 3: Now none of us have been asked. 48 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:56,720 Speaker 2: To carry the Son of God inside of us the 49 00:02:56,760 --> 00:02:59,320 Speaker 2: same way Mary did, But we have been asked to 50 00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:02,520 Speaker 2: carry him in our hearts and following God does come 51 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:06,840 Speaker 2: at a cost. Are we willing to risk everything to 52 00:03:06,960 --> 00:03:10,640 Speaker 2: praise God no matter what, To surrender our future, whatever 53 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:13,760 Speaker 2: that looks like, to surrender our reputation and even our 54 00:03:13,880 --> 00:03:15,000 Speaker 2: very life itself? 55 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 3: Mary was willing. Did she know exactly. 56 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:21,919 Speaker 2: Why the Son of God came into the world. Perhaps, 57 00:03:21,960 --> 00:03:24,519 Speaker 2: like the rest of the Israelite she anticipated a messiaho 58 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:28,000 Speaker 2: would rescue God's people from their physical enemies, in this case, 59 00:03:28,080 --> 00:03:33,000 Speaker 2: the Roman Empire. She didn't need to fully understand why. Instead, 60 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:36,440 Speaker 2: she chose to embrace God's plans, surrendering and yielding to 61 00:03:36,480 --> 00:03:40,160 Speaker 2: his sovereignty, even if it cost her hit her sexing 62 00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:43,880 Speaker 2: faith in life. One may God be calling you to today? 63 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:46,400 Speaker 2: How mny want you to share the love of Jesus 64 00:03:46,480 --> 00:03:49,560 Speaker 2: Christ with others? Are we willing to step out of 65 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:52,960 Speaker 2: our comfort zone even when it's uncomfortable, to surrender and 66 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:56,520 Speaker 2: submit to His plan and trust his promises, to long 67 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:59,640 Speaker 2: for the giver more than the gift, promise keeper, more 68 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:03,480 Speaker 2: than the promise itself. If we read the other gospel 69 00:04:03,520 --> 00:04:07,280 Speaker 2: accounts of Jesus' birth, we know Joseph contemplated divorcing Mary 70 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:10,560 Speaker 2: Matthew one nineteen. Being a just man, he didn't want 71 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:13,120 Speaker 2: to put her to shame, but before he could, an 72 00:04:13,160 --> 00:04:14,880 Speaker 2: angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream 73 00:04:14,920 --> 00:04:16,719 Speaker 2: and told him not to be afraid to take Mary 74 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:18,919 Speaker 2: as his wife, and that the child was from the 75 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:22,680 Speaker 2: Holy Spirit Verse twenty. God will always take care of 76 00:04:22,720 --> 00:04:25,400 Speaker 2: each of us when we walk in obedience, even when 77 00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:28,279 Speaker 2: it looks impossible or we may lose something we hold dear. 78 00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:32,160 Speaker 2: Choose to walk in that obedience anyway, It doesn't mean 79 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:35,080 Speaker 2: things will always turn out the way we want. Pete 80 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:37,760 Speaker 2: is a funny thing. He can either push us further 81 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:40,039 Speaker 2: from God or pull us closer to Him, depending on 82 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 2: how we choose to respond. 83 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:43,400 Speaker 3: Mary could have. 84 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:45,839 Speaker 2: Never foreseen the plans God had for her, the roles 85 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 2: she would have ultimately played in bringing God's son into 86 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:52,479 Speaker 2: the world. Had she resisted, God's plans still would have prevailed. 87 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:55,279 Speaker 2: Perhaps he would have chosen someone else for the task, 88 00:04:56,520 --> 00:04:59,159 Speaker 2: but then Mary would have missed out on an amazing 89 00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:01,440 Speaker 2: opportunity to be be part of what God was doing. 90 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:05,880 Speaker 2: Isaiah fifty five eight through nine es V says, for 91 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:08,839 Speaker 2: my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways 92 00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:11,920 Speaker 2: my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are 93 00:05:12,040 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 2: higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than 94 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:18,800 Speaker 2: your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. When we 95 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:21,680 Speaker 2: face the unknown, we must remember we are not trusting 96 00:05:21,720 --> 00:05:24,360 Speaker 2: what we can see, but the one who sees all things, 97 00:05:24,720 --> 00:05:28,160 Speaker 2: whose wisdom transcends our limited view, and whose thoughts are 98 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:31,400 Speaker 2: not our thoughts, and whose ways are higher than our ways. 99 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:34,839 Speaker 2: Do you think anyone ever imagined he would send the 100 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:38,920 Speaker 2: Messiah born miraculously through a virgin Do you think anyone 101 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:41,400 Speaker 2: ever imagined that Jesus Christ would come to save us 102 00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:43,919 Speaker 2: not as a war hero, but as a humble carpenter 103 00:05:44,200 --> 00:05:46,719 Speaker 2: who would grow up and take the punishment we deserved 104 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:50,279 Speaker 2: by dying on the cross in our place. Pray with me, 105 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 2: Dear Father God, sometimes I struggle to trust you. Please 106 00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:00,480 Speaker 2: help me to learn from Mary's surrender. Trust you and 107 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:02,880 Speaker 2: walk in obedience, even if it looks like I may 108 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:06,600 Speaker 2: lose something else. I hold dear, I know your plans 109 00:06:06,640 --> 00:06:09,240 Speaker 2: are higher than my own. As a f fifty five, 110 00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:12,760 Speaker 2: thank you for your great, indescribable love for me. 111 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:15,920 Speaker 3: In Jesus' name, Amen. 112 00:06:20,520 --> 00:06:23,840 Speaker 4: The Crosswalk Devotional is a production of Life Audio and 113 00:06:23,920 --> 00:06:27,760 Speaker 4: Salem Media. 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