Finding Favor with the King, p. 140 Scripture Reading Luke 1:46-55,
Mary resigned herself to God’s absolute faithfulness and surrendered to His purposes—even though she didn’t know why or how the things would come to pass spoken by the angel of the Lord.
At some time in your life, you may find yourself in Mary’s position. Faced with a situation that is hard to understand, and armed only with a word from the Lord, you will have to choose:
• Will you embrace God’s purposes along with the unknown consequences of your obedience ; or…
• Will you decline the uncertainty of the unknown and seek comfort in the seemingly “less risky” environment of life outside of God’s purposes?
The Bible tells us “without faith it is impossible to please God.” It seems that faith is the “currency” of God’s kingdom on earth. By biblical definition, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
In the fullness of time, the young Jewish virgin named Mary made a fateful decision to risk all in response to the words of the Lord. She decided to resign herself to the faithfulness of God in the face of the unknown. She declared to the Lord, “Be it unto me according to thy word,” and the result changed human history and fulfilled the highest divine destiny of all time.
Another young Jewish woman named Esther faced a fateful choice between what seemed to be certain death at the hands of Persian bodyguards and possible deliverance by the hand of the Invisible God. Would she choose the false safety of passive observance and watch as her people were systematically hunted down, or would she take the active path of obedience in the face of clear danger and possibly save her people?
Mordecai reminded Esther that while obedience often has unpleasant consequences, disobedience always has dire consequences connected to it. He warned her that even if she was silent, God would save His people some way, but it wouldn’t help her and her family. Esther resigned herself to God’s faithfulness and faced death to preserve life.
What about you? Are you tempted to step back, hole up, or remain silent in the face of a difficult challenge in your life—when you somehow know you were born to do more ? Each time you find yourself in a crisis or situation that is beyond what you can “fix” or handle on your own, you have a perfect opportunity to lean upon the One Who loves to save, heal, and deliver His children. Following Christ in this life is a faith action from beginning to end.
It takes faith to receive Christ as Lord and Savior, and it takes faith to trust Him with family members, daily challenges, business or job-related needs, and with provision in times of crisis.
Prayer: Lord, know that I have questions and concerns about the future, and whether or not things will work out in the problem areas I’ve told You about. I often wonder how You will fulfill Your promises and purpose in my life, but now I realize that sometimes Your purpose in my life requires me to resign myself to Your absolute faithfulness. I trust You, even when facing the unknown possibilities of tomorrow. ♥ u =)
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