Say Yes to God

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"Be it unto me according to Thy Word." (Luke 1:38, KJV).

As you travel up this mountain -- and to call it a mountain is more than a little overstated; actually it’s more like a rocky hill. But as you travel up it you come to this town.

And to call it a town is somewhat ambitious; it’s more like a mobile home park that sprang up around a truck stop. It is a nowhere town, with nothing going for it. No one would ever want to live there, and the people who do were either born there and don’t realize they can leave, or they were forced there by economic circumstances that left them powerless.

The other group that rounds out the citizenship of this sad place are outlaws and social misfits.

To make matters worse the people of this particular place are of an ethnic group that is reviled by the dominant culture of the land. Yet, though they suffer from discrimination, there exists within their own social structure a similar misbehavior. They discriminate against one another.

But, inasmuch as it cannot be based on ethnicity, the discrimination is based on position and influence; it is based upon gender and wealth. Thus, wealthy men are the top of the pile…and poor girls are at the bottom.

The worst thing you could be in the pitiful place is a poor girl.

One such girl lived in this town. And like any girl, she dreamed of something more. God took note of her tender hopes, and one special night He spoke to her of unimaginable things. She said “Yes” to God’s will and then walked into history.

We know her today as Mother Mary.

There are three great lessons we may learn from Mary's humble response to God's amazing invitation, and if we will follow her example and say YES to God's will for our lives -- we just might step into history as well.

Lesson One tomorrow.
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