Written by: Margie Davis

In Luke 1, Mary, the mother of Jesus had just been told by the angel of the Lord that she was highly esteemed and had been chosen to give birth to the son of God. Verse 38 says “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered, “May it be to me as you have said.”

These words, to me, are some of the most profound in the Bible. Mary knew exactly who she was. “I am the Lord’s servant.”

Mary wrapped herself in that identity and that is what she called herself. She didn’t call herself “unworthy” or “incapable” or “too scared.” She didn’t think of herself as others around her surely did, as “adulteress, “unwed mother” or “outcast.” As a matter of fact, Mary thought of herself as blessed because she had been chosen by God to serve Him. She wrote a song about it!

And you know what? That Mary, who functioned daily as “The Lord’s Servant” raised up the Savior of the world, who said to His father in the garden on the night of His arrest “if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may Your will be done.” There was a reason that God chose Mary to be the mother of our Lord. She knew how to keep the main thing in front of her at all times. Serving Him. And she knew how to teach that to her son.

What is your current situation and what would happen if you applied the words “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you say” to it? Maybe your total acknowledgment of God’s authority over your life is all He’s waiting to hear from you. Let’s try to slow down and quit spinning in circles trying to keep up with everything and everyone. Strip everything back to just being the Lord’s servant.

What God asked Mary to do wasn’t an easy thing. Scripture tells us she was afraid. I can’t imagine how terrified she was in that moment! But she listened to what the Lord’s angel was saying to her, she knew who God was and she also knew who SHE was. She didn’t understand the how. (Who could have? Pregnant by the Holy Spirit??) But she knew the WHO and she trusted the WHO completely. So she said “let it be.” The NASB says “may it be done to me according to your word.” She knew this was going to “be done to” her. She was young and afraid and had no way to know the ultimate outcome, but she had all confidence in the authority of God over her life!!! If we had that kind of confidence would we give more, love more and pray more? We would only have ONE THING to concern ourselves with. Am I being a servant of the Most High God? Every time we reach a decision making crossroads we come back to that place where Mary met with God’s angel and said “ok, let’s roll!” Her “Servant of the Lord identity” was so firmly wrapped around her that she was able to squash every fear with it. She was able to hold her head high and walk through the next 9 months and find JOY in it!

And she was wrapped so tightly with that identity that even as she watched her son be accused and hung to die for crimes He wasn’t guilty of and though her grief was intense, she was still the Lord’s servant, she had confidence in God even then.

Your pain, your anxiety, your sadness may seem far beyond your ability to handle. Get up every morning and acknowledge that He is Lord and that you are His servant (also translated SLAVE!) That means He makes all the hard decisions for you. He is the boss of you and that’s ok because He has your best in mind always!

If you’re in a season of peace and joy right now, maybe God has given you that rest to enjoy and re-charge for the next time you’re called to do something difficult and maybe even scary. As you enjoy that rest, get up every morning and STILL acknowledge to God that you are His servant and you’ll be ready when He calls you to the next task.

The way we build confidence is to learn everything we can about the God who is in charge of us. What does your spiritual life look like? Have you been baptized into Him so that you have the Holy Spirit living literally IN you? He will help you understand what you read in the Bible. You will find it very difficult to trust someone you don’t know all that well. If you have already been baptized, are you being obedient? If you’re already being obedient, can you go deeper until you are finally to that place of just standing there and saying “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said.”