The Humbleness of Mary

"But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart."

Luke 2:19 (NIV)

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had many of the "memory" posts from Facebook come up on my social media feed.  Almost each one of them has to do with me posting items about my children and me being proud of them.  I don't think there is a parent around that doesn't take an opportunity to proudly share with others the accomplishments of their children.  I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing.  I love to hear parents speak about their kids and all the great things they have done.  Likewise, I also like to chat about my children with others, too.

Is there something wrong with that?  Well, when I look at the paragraph above, I certainly see the word "proud" mentioned multiple times.  Should I be "checking" my proud moments at the door?  I do if I want to live a life of humility.  It is certainly okay to be feel proud of the achievements of your children, but what if I take that too far - what if I share those moments without listening to that of others?  I am sure there have been times when that has happened.  

Yet, if there is someone that had good reason to be proud of her child and share it with everyone, it was Mary.  Think about this.  Mary could have handled the entire situation from a different point of view.  When people were mocking her and shaming her, she could have shared, "Go ahead, you don't know who you are messing with!" or "Wait until you see what MY child is going to do."  Mary doesn't do ANY of that.  Although Mary had plenty of opportunity, she takes on a state of humility enveloped in servitude.  From the very beginning when she had that meeting with the angel, she accepted her role as a servant of God.  She lived the life of humbleness even after Jesus' death.

Mary is an incredible example of how to live a life of humility.  Mary never used the birth of the world's savior to her advantage.  In fact, she continued to live a life that was filled with serving God.  From Jesus' birth to Jesus' death, Mary served her son as the God that He was.  There are many actions that show Mary's humility.  Yet, the greatest of those, I believe, is the verse for today.  She pondered all that was said about Jesus' birth in her heart.  She didn't scream them from the mountaintops.  She didn't post it on the local social media.  She didn't send out her own messenger to tell the town of Bethlehem all that was happening in their little town.  Mary didn't fill her self with pride, but filled her heart with joy and servanthood.

The lessons are long on what we can do to emulate Mary in our lives.  Today's lesson is the greatest she gives us, the lesson of humility through servitude.  As we go through not just this Christmas season, but through our lives, may we ponder Mary in our hearts.  May we know that a life filled with humility is a great gift to our Savior Jesus.

Savior Jesus, please help me to have a heart of humility, like Mary.  May my life be one of servitude to you and to those that surround me.  Replace pride with humility and an opportunity to give to those around me.  In your gracious name I pray.  Amen!