And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.”

–Parallel verses:
1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭5‬b-‭7‬
All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

We can learn a lot about people when we study how they respond to adversity and how they respond to blessing. This makes me think of some of the rugged terrain I live in in Idaho. We have some significant mountains here. And when you hunt deer and elk, you have to hike way up into these mountains to find your animals. In order to do that, with gear packed, a person must be in pretty good physical shape. I went hunting with my eldest son a couple of years ago, and found that the trek was significant. I was a little out of shape too, and so I had a tougher time of it. But once we got up to the crest of the side of this hill, we could see all around. We focused a small amount of time on our accomplishment, but most of the time we focused on the beauty God had created for us to enjoy. We focused on his blessings — mountains, rivers, forests, cliffs, it was beauty not seen every day. When I reach my life summits, what do I focus on? Do I focus on my accomplishment most or God’s provision and blessing?

Mary was first and foremost humble. She did not think too highly of herself. She could have gotten arrogant — after all God chose her to carry his Son. She would be the mother of God in the flesh. But she realized that there was nothing she could do to deserve this honor; it was a gift.

Second, she lived life with a mindset that helped her hear God — she saw herself as his servant. She sought to advance and promote and do his will. She did this when times were hard and the trials almost seemed too much to bear. And she did it when she was blessed beyond belief.

Third, she responds to God’s blessing and provision for her with praise. She gives him credit and thanked him.

We can learn a lot from the humble young virgin girl who had a simple, yet powerful, faith.
Be humble. Have a servant mindset. Praise God for your blessings.

Where are you today — on the rugged-terrain-trail or at the summit? And how can you be more humble and servant-like in how you pursue the great bounty God has for you?

Thank you, Lord, for all of the ways you bless me. In the road up to the blessings, I admit I sometimes wonder where you are. But you always have my good in mind and deliver blessings far greater than I can imagine. Teach me to be more humble, a better servant of you, and to praise your Name with abandon!