And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Luke 1:38

After receiving her commissioning and being reassured that God was at work, Mary responded with three beautiful last words.

Behold (which we don’t use these days) means “See! Look! Here I am!” The closest thing we have to this in our context is someone responding to a classroom roll call. Suzi, Eva, Mary? Here!

I am the servant of the Lord is like saying, “I will do whatever you wish” or “Lord, I present myself to you.” This is a continual prayer of openness to God. This is the living sacrifice found in Romans 12:1:

Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship.

And lastly, Let it be to me is a voluntary wish that is done to me. Mary was saying, “This is a my wish. I sign up for this heart and soul”. I believe Mary was fulfilling Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.God had favored her for a good work. She merely accepted.

I wonder at times how I can do the job God has given me. I am in a small missions organization and there are many out there doing bigger and better jobs than I am. I don’t have a formal counseling degree. I am a woman trying to influence men.

But I look at Mary. She did not let any of the normal excuses hold her back. And she didn’t even have the Scriptures and the resurrection of Jesus to bolster her faith. She simply said, “Let it be….” I want that courage, that surrendered heart, that faith.

What task is God asking you to do?

How have you responded? 

How can you respond more like Mary did?

PRAYER

Lord, I present myself to you. Here I am for whatever you would wish.

Next: Make It So

For an edited (and much better written) version of this, please purchase Favored Blessed Pierced: A Fresh Look at Mary of Nazareth, available on Amazon.