Magnify the Lord

There was a song we used to sing in our youth group when I was 12. It's lyrics were:

I will magnify the Lord
For He is worthy to be praised.
I will magnify the Lord
For He is worthy to be praised.

Hosanna,
Blessed be the Rock
and may the God of my salvation be exalted
Hosanna,
Blessed be the Rock
and may the God of my salvation be exalted.

Mary didn't know this song, but if she did, she probably would have sung it in Luke 1. However, she did praise God in a big way, when she said in Luke 1:46-47 "My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."

It is interesting that when Mary praised God in front of her cousin, Elisabeth, she used the same words Hanna did in I Samuel 2. Hanna praised God after she (a) prayed for a son that she would give to the Lord, (b) received the son she prayed for and (c) followed through on her promise to dedicate the son to the Lord's service. As a result, Samuel was not only born, but had his entire life committed to serving the Lord. Samuel would go on to be a key figure in the history of Israel.

Hanna's affliction was that she could not have a child, but her husband's other wife could. This had a devastating effect on Hanna. Hanna wanted a son more than anything. But it was not until her focus shifted from what a child could do for her to what a child could do for God that her prayers for a child were answered. It wasn't until after God fulfilled His promise and Hannah fulfilled hers that she praised God. She magnified the Lord, because she made the sacrifice needed to advance the Kingdom of God.

In Mary's situation, Mary had not prayed (at least, not in scripture) to be the mother of Christ, but God chose her. When she went to visit Elisabeth, Elisabeth greeted her with "Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb." Notice that Elisabeth praised Mary first, then the Fruit of the womb. Mary replied by saying that her soul magnified the Lord.

Basically, Mary was saying, "It's not about me, it's about God." Her life was going to be used to bring up the one who would "save His people from their sins." She was glad to make that sacrifice, and did so humbly.

That brings us to what we learn from these verses:

1. It's not about us. It's about God. The Bible was not written to teach us how to "Be the Best You," or how to have "the Best Life Now." The scriptures do not teach you how to manipulate God to get what you want. The Bible was written so that we could get to know God.

2. When we realize our place, our standing with God (that it is about Him and not us), then God can use us in big ways.

3. What we do needs to be for the honor and glory of God, not ourselves, our organizations or our businesses.

4. If we don't first trust the Lord, #1-3 will not happen anyway. Luke 1:45 says "And blessed [is] she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord." Mary had to first trust God before He could use her as the mother of His Son. We have to trust God (a) for salvation, and (b) enough to follow Him beyond salvation to experience the blessings of being used in His Kingdom work on earth.

So, trust the Lord, and make Him the center of your life.