The 40-Day Challenge : Day 16
- 11
- Feb
- 2013
“Feelings bring forth feelings.” — Viviane Freitas
“And Mary said: ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his seed forever.’” (Luke 1:46-55)
Mary’s prayer reveals what was in her heart.
Three are those who speak in the Bible: God, man, and the devil.
In this case, it’s Mary who is speaking.
She was not speaking by the Spirit, but she expressing herself in her own words.
For sure Mary was not popular, especially because in those days women did not have much value.
But from the moment she conceived the Lord Jesus, the Son of the Most High, her name would go down in history; everyone would know about, for she was chosen by God Himself.
And she realised that…
In her own words, she spoke about what God had done inside of her, although she did not consider herself worthy of that.
“And His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.”
Why did Mary say that?
Because she did not consider herself perfect!
Only those who are aware of their mistakes and imperfections recognise the mercy of God.
When we look inside of us, we see how much we need to depend on God and be grateful to Him.
Even though nothing could be seen on the outside, Mary was already grateful: “For He who is mighty has done great things for me…”
But the fact that she was carrying God Himself inside of her — the Lord Jesus — was enough for her.
When we have an encounter with God, when we have Him inside of us, we exult and thank Him for everything He has done and will do in our lives.
“He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts…”
God sees what is inside of you. He knows whether or not you follow your heart and live by what you feel.
God sees what people cannot see; He knows what is inside of you.
What has filled your mind? What are your priorities?
Do you live to please others? Do you follow the bad or the good examples?
Are you being held back by a feeling or trauma? Are you always trying to defend or justify yourself? Have you lost trust?
God can only manifest Himself to us when we depend on Him, when we do not make hasty decisions “just in case” he does not do His part.
When we don’t trust in God, we are constantly worried and doubtful…
“He has put down the mighty from their thrones…”
Mary saw God put down the mighty from their thrones!
No matter how much you’ve been threatened, trust in God! Don’t justify yourself. Place everything in the hand of God, and He will do justice.
“He has filled the hungry with good things…”
The hungry for justice do not justify themselves to others; instead, they wait on God and are filled with good things. Those who trust in God have peace because they know God will provide for them!
“He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his seed forever.”
Look at how Mar saw God…
There are people who say in their hearts, “It’s unfair; I’ve been hard done by…” and so, they do not trust in God.
But those who trust and depend on Him appreciate Him despite their circumstances. Their eyes are good.
Look at Mary’s conduct and attitudes and understand why God chose her… Look at her gratitude and exultation of God.
Mary saw God as merciful and patient.
God always fulfils His promises — and Mary knew that. She did not need to see anything in order to believe. She didn’t need to hold a baby in her arms to glorify God.
Her words reflected what was inside of her…
“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34)
Ada
16th January 2018 at 10:54
This word was strong, Mary believe before she even felt the baby inside of her, I am sure after that she started to behave like a pregnant woman by taking extra care of herself. Now I was thinking was do I doubt then when I read the word of God, if He promise then I need to take the attitude that it will come to pass, if it requires me to take action or to praise Him like Mary did then I should.
Esther
11th July 2014 at 4:23
“But those who trust and depend on Him appreciate Him despite their circumstances. Their eyes are good.” It is true that real Christians don’t panic whenever they are in a difficult situation cos they know that God is always with them and will never forsake them.
God is indeed merciful and patient.
We must always remember that God always fulfils His promises. We just have to trust and obey Him.
Thank you for this message mrs viviane. God bless you and your family:)
Siphosethu Cpt
12th June 2014 at 5:44
“When we don’t trust God, we worry and become doubtful……When we do, we are at peace”. This is so true indeed Mrs Vivi and we show what is inside through our attitude on the outside.
Norma
25th August 2013 at 17:44
Only those who are aware of heir mistakes and imperfection recognise the mercy of God.When i look inside of me i have to see how much i need to depend on God and be grateful to Him.In face of any injustice i do not have to justify myself but i have to trust that God will bring justice to me.THANK YOU
GOD BLESS