City Life Starter

Written by Aisha Darwesh

The Word

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.”

–Luke 1:26-33 ESV

¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

–Romans 8:15 ESV

Aisha’s Analysis

In today’s portion of scripture, we see Mary’s encounter with the angel, Gabriel, who delivered the Gospel (or good news) about Jesus entering her life through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Not surprisingly, when Mary was first greeted by Gabriel, she was greatly troubled and perhaps a little puzzled (v. 29). She tried to discern what he meant by his greeting: “o favored one, the Lord is with you” (v. 28). 

To this, Gabriel instructs Mary not to be afraid, assures her that she has found favor with the Lord, and proceeds to tell her about Jesus; how He’ll come into the world, His birth, and His never ending, unshakable Kingdom (v. 30-33). 

Mary’s choice to not give into fear and to simply trust the promise of God is a shining example of how we can live in surrender to God. Mary’s fear was valid. In their culture at the time, a woman’s unfaithfulness was punishable by death. She was actually risking her life by choosing God’s path for her to become the mother of Jesus.

Just imagine for a second if Mary allowed fear to hinder her choice to receive God’s promise. She may have lived a comfortable life with Joseph. She may not have had to deal with malicious gossip from her community or a tarnished reputation, but she would have missed out on partnering with God to bring the savior to the world. 

Praise God, Mary chose God’s plan for her life. She didn’t let her completely natural and legitimate fears override her fear of God. She chose a path of surrender. She truly treasured the promises of God in her heart and lived her life accordingly regardless of the cost.    

Application

In what ways are you letting fear dictate your choices? Stated differently, who or what are you putting your trust in? Is it God or something else? Is what you do and how you live your life all on your own? 

If so, you are missing out! God’s plan for you involves a partnership with Him. You can’t accomplish it by yourself. If you think you can, you are severely limiting yourself. 

As a practical way to surrender to God, pay attention to when fear comes up for you. Is it at work, at home, in certain social settings? What are you dreading? 

Then, start asking yourself the important questions. How can you make these fears an opportunity to trust God and receive His promises? What would a faithful response look like instead? Who are you really living your life for anyway? 

Prayer

Father God, I admit that it can sometimes be incredibly difficult to go against my fears. I praise You that I am no longer a slave to fear, but a child of God. Fear doesn’t get to dictate my choices. Just as Mary did over two thousand years ago, I surrender my life to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.