The Magnificat

During Christmas time, Christians like to stop and remember Jesus' birth and how it impacted our world. So many beautiful characters surrounded His birth like the angels, the Magi, the shepherds, and Jesus' mother: Mary.
Mary was a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph at the time God sent Gabriel to tell her that she would be the mother of Jesus. In the Jewish religion, it was very looked down upon to not be married and to be pregnant at the same time. This is the sacrifice Mary, a virgin who found favor in the sight of God, had to make. And she did in the form of a "bondslave". She praised God when she knew she would be looked down upon!

"And Mary said: 'My soul exalts the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave;
For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
And His mercy is upon generation after generation
Toward those who fear Him.
He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
And sent away the rich empty-handed.
He has given help to Israel His servant,
In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his descendants forever.'" -Luke 1:46-55

How hard it would be to be shunned from your friends, neighbors, your religious leaders, and your fiance to obey God! But God told Mary to be the mother of the One who would save the world, and she obeyed.
We can learn a lot from Mary about being humble, obedient, and trusting of God. She gave up her dignity to be obedient and that truly makes her beautiful.

"And Mary said, 'Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.'" -Luke 1:38a