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Women World Leaders' Podcast


May 17, 2023

Happy Mother’s Day week! Join Julie Jenkins as we celebrate the gift and responsibility of mothering another, which takes place every day in every woman’s life in some form. God is always with us in our calling to care for another—leading, guiding, and cheering us on. (Luke 1:26-38)

 

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Thank you for joining us today for Walking in the Word, the Biblical Teaching arm of the Women World Leaders’ podcast. My name is Julie Jenkins, and I am honored to walk with you as we study the Gospels. Our goal for you through these podcasts is that you would experience God’s extravagant love and your exquisite purpose as we focus on teaching, inspiration, and encouragement. Our prayer is that as your intimacy with God grows, your love for one another will flourish, enabling you to live out a courageous purpose-driven life, fueled by the Word, led by the Spirit, and propelled forward into your God-given destiny through fearless faith!

 

Here in the United States, we celebrated Mother’s Day this past Sunday. Whether or not you are a mother, as women, we are constantly put in the role of “mothering” others – which can be fulfilling, exhilarating, confusing, and just plain hard work. Mothering can, and should, cause us to question our thoughts and actions. In a single bullet point, mothering should pull us closer to God as we depend on His provision, wisdom, strength, and comfort.

 

The Bible is full of examples of godly mothers we can learn from. Today, during this week of celebrating motherhood, I want to veer from our usual path and pause to take a look at Mary, Jesus’ mother as we dive into Luke chapter 1, verses 26-38 from the New Living Translation.  

 

Allow me to begin in prayer:

Dear Most Holy God! We offer you this day and this time and ask you to guide us in YOUR will and with your wisdom as we celebrate your amazing concept of mothering. I ask for revelation today, that we may each hear what YOU want us to know. Open our minds, our hearts, and our spirits to hear from you. Infiltrate the hard parts of our soul, forgive us of our sins that we may be clear vessels for your glory to flow through freely. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

 

In the first part of Luke 1, we read about Zechariah, the esteemed priest, who was visited in the temple by the angel Gabriel who was there to tell him of the imminent birth of his and Elizabeth’s son, John the Baptist. In today’s scripture, Gabriel is back – this time to visit an unwed teenage virgin who lives in the undistinguished village of Nazareth. Quite the dichotomy of meetings the illustrious angel Gabriel had! And yet, in both instances, he was sent by God for an incredible purpose – to share the news of the upcoming birth of a child. Parenting is important to God, and He will be with us every step of the way – before we even know we need Him.

Elizabeth, Zechariah’s wife, was older and longing for a child; on the other hand, Mary was a young lady about to be married. Despite the astounding differences between these mothers-to-be, Elizabeth and Mary had something in common: they were both sold out to God and willing to obediently and courageously walk wherever He would lead.

In verse 26, we read that Elizabeth was Mary’s elder relative and had spent MANY years trying to get pregnant; and she was now in her 6th month of pregnancy due to God’s impeccable timing. Through her pregnancy, we see God’s perfect provision and answer to years of prayers from that godly couple. But, we can imagine that Mary was NOT praying to be pregnant - she wasn’t even married yet, only engaged!

A study of the Jewish culture tells us that at that time, a young girl would normally get engaged when she was between 12 and 14 years old, and that the engagement would last about a year. Very different than in most parts of the world today, this engagement would have been formal and legal. Though the bride-to-be would have continued to live with her parents during the engagement period, she would have been identified as a wife and therefore, would be considered an adulterer if she had had sex, which would likely lead to a calling off of the marriage ceremony and require legal divorce proceedings to occur.

We learn a bit about Mary’s groom-to-be in verse 27 – his name was Joseph and he was a descendant of King David. Joseph and Zechariah were no doubt important in their children’s lives, but as this is the week of Mother’s Day, let’s focus on the moms.

So Gabriel appears to Mary, and says, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” The text says that Mary was “confused and disturbed” and tried to think what the angel could mean. Gabriel went on,  “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel[c] forever; his Kingdom will never end!”

Mary then asks the question -  “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”

We can see that the Lord WAS with Mary. He was already giving her wisdom and understanding that this pregnancy was imminent. The angel had told Mary “you WILL conceive” – yet Mary understood that this conception was to happen even while she was still a virgin.

Have you heard of the sixth sense that a mother has? Where she can quickly and miraculously discern a situation involving her children. You’ve probably experienced it. But when you feel something about your child, this is not a “magical sense.” It is the voice of the Holy Spriit speaking to you and guiding you.

When you are given the calling to mother, whether that be to mother your own flesh and blood, someone who is passing through your life, or any situation in between, the Holy Spirit WILL guide and direct your words, actions, and responses – if you let Him. Be assured that the devil doesn’t want you to listen to the Holy Spirit, so the world may tell you that your mothering intuition is just a farce, and your own flesh may tell you that what you have heard is impossible. But be assured that God cares for His children so much that He is never going to leave us alone in parenting them. God is with us each step of the way, and when He speaks, we are wise to listen and respond. Yet, it is okay to question when things don’t seem clear. We SHOULD always ask God for clarification, wisdom, and guidance. Mary was confused, she didn’t understand, and so she asked – how can this happen? This wasn’t a lack of faith on Mary’s part, but a mere question of – how, God?

The scripture continues in verse 35…

35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.[d]

There is so much information here! Let’s examine some of what Mary learned…

Gabriel first answered Mary’s “how” question, saying, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” Mary was a faithful and devout Jewish girl who was well-versed in the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet, this was something new for her to experience. In Mary’s time, the Holy Spirit came upon individuals in specific circumstances. But for the Christ-follower today, the Holy Spirit is ALWAYS present. Let this passage be a reminder that WE have the miraculous wisdom and power of the Holy Spirit with us every moment – at our fingertips.

Mary also learned from Gabriel that her baby was to be holy, the Son of God. The Jewish people had been waiting for the Messiah – the promised son in the lineage of David, who would reign forever – the fulfillment of a promise made hundreds of years earlier - AND the words spoken by the angel clearly prophesied Mary that her son was to be both flesh AND God. She was to name Him Jesus – meaning Jehovah is salvation.

God taught Mary about the one she was to mother, and we, too, can trust God to teach us about those we are called to mother! God knows each of us inside and out, and He knows exactly what we each need. That’s not to say that a mother/child situation is always ideal because, unfortunately, we don’t always follow God with every turn – and as a result, hard times may come. But our or our children’s faults don’t negate the fact that God is always with us, knows us each inside and out, and is always waiting to share with us His wisdom regarding how He wants us to specifically guide, lead, and love someone the one He has entrusted us with.  

I doubt that Mary knew HOW difficult her life would be upon her obedience to God. No mother-to-be truly understands the joys and pains that motherhood will bring. And no child of God truly understands the joys and pains involved in following the will of God. Still, Mary knew that in saying yes to God, she was risking everything. She likely wondered if Joseph would turn away from her, and If he left, would her parents turn against her? Had Mary allowed her imagination to run wild, she could have let fear paralyze her as she wondered if she would have to spend the rest of her life begging or living a life of prostitution. And if Joseph did stay, would their wedding day be one of joy? Would she be ostracized by society forever? Would people think she was crazy if she claimed to be the mother of the Messiah?

But Mary was faithful, and she simply clung to God and His promises. She knew of God’s steadfast love and His perfect provision, she knew of His amazing power and perfect control. She heard Gabriel’s words, nothing is impossible with God, and she surely responded in faith, saying…

 “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”

As I think about Mary, I also think about my own parenting. My kids are getting older now, but they still give me plenty of opportunities to trust God’s work in their lives. No matter where you are in the process of mothering – caring for an infant daily, sharing wisdom with your older children, or mothering unconventionally, by loving the one God puts in your path today, you can trust God to lead and guide YOU as you lead and guide another. And as you lean into Him and He continues to show up over and over again, praise and thanks to our God will fill you to overflowing as you become closer to Him through this act of blessed parenting.

Psalm 92 says “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High, It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening. … You thrill me, Lord, with all you have done for me!”

Happy Mother’s Day week! I pray you feel honored as you walk in God’s presence.

Dear Heavenly Father – we thank you for each woman who is mothering in your will, clinging to you for wisdom and guidance. And I pray that each person listening feels honored today for her work even as she is humbled by your greatness. We walk in amazement that you allow us to partner with you in building your kingdom, and we give you all the praise and glory. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.