Greetings of peace and joy to you all in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Being at God’s service is a joyous thing in all our lives. Being God’s favored one is the ultimate happiness of our lives. There are many instances in the Holy Scriptures. Abraham, father of Faith, was favored by God and was abundantly blessed by God because of His obedience to God’s command ( Gen 22:15-18). The Lord blessed Joseph because of his trust in God’s mighty deeds. Not only he was blessed by God but also his Egyptian’s master because of him ( Gen 39: 1-5). So many are the instances we can see how God blessed His servants. This blessings came to them because of two reasons. 1. God’s abundant mercy, 2. The humble submission of the servants to the Lord. Among many instances of humble submissions, Mary’s submission to God is very unique and is very challenging. All the other submissions to God resulted benefits to them alone. Whereas Mary’s submission to the will of God resulted salvation to the whole mankind. Her YES to the Lord changed the fate of the universe. “ Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according your word.” ( Lk 1: 38).
HOW MARY IS THE HANDMAID OF THE LORD
Once there was a shopkeeper who manufactures pencils. One day as he was about to keep a pencil inside of the pencil box, he told to the pencil the following things. He said, “ My dear pencil, as I keep you inside the box remember this six important things. 1. Surrender yourself completely to your master. Make yourself comfortable in you master’s hands and work in accordance with your master’s hand movement. 2. Your life is a life of sacrifice. There will be times where you need to sacrifice your external wood so that you will be useful. 3. Not what is external is great in you but what is inside of you. Your essence, the carbon. 4. Your life is not for yours but for others. 5. Never seek glory from your master. Instead be at his service all the time.
As the pencil in our hands, Mary is in God’s mighty hand. Just as the pencil was told the above instructions by his master, Mary applied all these instructions in her life and became a humble servant to the Lord. The following values in her prove that she is the handmaid of the Lord.
1. Complete Surrenderance.
Her Yes to Angel’s call is a sign of complete surrendrance. She would have known the risk of accepting the invitation. And she asks, “ How will this be since I am a virgin?” Then the angel revealed the mighty plan of God ( Lk 1: 34-37). And she completely surrendered herself into the hands of God.
2. Life of Sacrifice.
Her life is full of sacrifices. It is not that easy to sacrifice our desires, wishes, ambitions and aspirations even for our loved ones. But Mary sacrificed all her life and most importantly her 33 years old young son to die on the cross. Seeing the death of her son, naked, in front of all needs a great courage to sacrifice.
3. Her Humble Submission to the Will of God
Her humble submission to the will of God is the essence of her life. She believed in God’s protection and care. She submitted her whole self to the will of God. St paul says, “ I can do all things through him who strengthns me.”( Phil 4:13). This words were practical in the life of Our Mother. She submitted herself and accomplished the divine plan in her by submitting herself to God’s will.
4. Life for Others
Living a selfish life is not a worth living. Instead living for the good of others is a worth living. Great persons in the history are remembered for this. Either of their good deeds for others or of their selfish life for themselves. Mary is always remembered and praised because of her life for others. For example her service to her cousin Elizabeth ( Lk 1: 39-45), Her intercession at the wedding banquet at cana ( Jn 2: 1-1-11). Though she was born Immaculate and had the assurance of the heaven she lived her life for others and gave her son to the world in order to bring the fruits of eternal life by his passion, death and resurrection.
5. Seeking No Glory
Mary never sought glory. In the song of Magnificat, she praises the Lord for three important reasons.
For, the mighty deeds that the Lord had done for her personally. Secondly, for the mighty deeds that the Lord had done to the people of Israel. Thirdly, for the great deeds that the Lord had done for those who fear him. In all these cases she praised and magnified the Lord. In the wedding at Cana she sends the servants to her son. In that great miracle she never boasted that the miracle was done because of her. In her whole life she never sought glory, instead she humbled herself and God had exalted her to be the Queen of Heaven and Earth.
So dear friends, let us all seek the intercession of our mother to inculcate in us her virtues of servant hood . Amen.
Written by
Bro. Rajendra
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