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A Chosen Vessel: Advent Reflection on God's Call Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 21, 2008 |
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by Sherlette Lee |
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Scriptures: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16; Luke 1:47-55; Romans 16: 25-27; Luke 1:26-38 Of the women in the Bible, Mary captures my imagination. I find something very special about her for having been the woman who brought Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, into the physical world. I often wonder what it was like to be the mother of Jesus. The mother of the most High God! One of the stories about the birth of Jesus (Luke 1:26-38) begins with an angel who appeared to Mary and said, "Greetings, favored one. The Lord is with you." (Luke 1:28) Centuries before the announcement by the angel Gabriel, the prophet Isaiah had prophesied the coming of the Messiah: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14) The identification of an angel of the Lord with this humble young woman (she was perhaps about 12 or 13) is the way God identifies with those who are lowly or deemed unimportant in society. Mary was from Nazareth, a rural town with fewer than 500 inhabitants. Interestingly,God didn't choose one of the distinguished wives of the Temple leaders who lived in the beautiful city of Jerusalem. God chose Jesus to be born in an insignificant town through the womb of a young unmarried peasant girl. At the angel's appearance, Mary of course was shocked and confused. "Don't be afraid, Mary," the angel Gabriel reassured her. "You have found favor with God. Behold you will conceive and bring forth a Son, and you will call Him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest." Frightened though she was, Mary recognized in the words of the angel the messianic promises she had heard so many times before. Just imagine her tremendous surprise and joy not only at hearing of the coming of the Messiah, awaited anxiously in the context of Roman domination, but she, a poor woman had been chosen by God, to bring forth the Messiah! How phenomenal! As Mary of Nazareth accepted this news, she would face the challenge of being an unwed mother in the eyes of society, accepting the risk that her future husband might reject her for being pregnant before marriage or being stoned to death for adultery. However, she accepted these enormous challenges because she believed the words of the angel were from God. God has also placed His "call" on my life. As a deaconess, my servant ministry of love, service, and justice in the community is central to my call. God provided an opportunity for me to work with and make a difference in the lives of the poor and needy. I rejoice in representing God's presence of mercy and compassion to the community. My commitment is making Jesus Christ known as I work to eradicate ignorance and illiteracy--often the root causes of injustice that robs life of dignity and worth. I help persons living on the edge of society to obtain a driver's license, open a bank account, fill out a job application, and pass the citizenship test. Like Mary, my response to God's call to serve is: "Be it done unto me according to thy word."
Sherlette Lee, a deaconess, is an active member of the Crawford Memorial United Methodist Church in the New York Annual Conference. She is certified in Older Adult Ministry, Evangelism and Spiritual Formation. She is a certified Emergency Response Volunteer with the New York Annual Conference and also serves as a lay speaker and secretary at large for several committes in her local church. Donations to the ministry of a deaconess /home missioner may be sent to the Deaconess/Home Missioner Cutting Edge Ministry Advance - 982339.
Date posted: Nov 29, 2008 |
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