Issue link: http://denverseminary.uberflip.com/i/909943
DECEMBER 6 1 "In a loud voice she exclaimed: 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?'" —Luke 1:42–43 E lizabeth and Mary, both unexpectedly expecting, deepen their journey together in Luke's telling of the Christmas narrative. They have family and scandal in common. Mary is young, Elizabeth well along in her years. Mary is the talk of her community—she is not supposed to be pregnant, a shaky teenager. Elizabeth is married to the priest, Zechariah, and for years they have tried to conceive. Elizabeth has walked the market and the streets of her town to whispers and wonder: "What's wrong with her that she cannot have a child? What did she do wrong in God's eyes?" Both women know the sound of whispers. One afternoon, Mary arrives on Elizabeth's doorstep. No text, no phone call, nothing to prepare for Mary's arrival, yet instinctively, Elizabeth and the child in her womb recognize the presence of the divine. Elizabeth marvels at the favor she has just received: a visit from the mother of Jesus. The women are together, pregnant, hopeful, confused, terrified. The beauty of their story comes out in verse 56: "Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home." In the confusion, in the chaos, in the trial, they companioned one another. And Elizabeth asks, Why am I so favored? Why would God shine upon me? What have I done to deserve this? God's favor rests upon those whom He loves. Elizabeth has spent a life of devotion to God, a life of worship, of everyday faith, of carrying on in her circumstances. Her life may not have appeared overly faith-filled, but she carried on, day after day. She made mistakes, she doubted, she wondered. And yet, she receives God's favor. What have I done to deserve this favor? We do not receive an answer in this text. Is it possible the answer is simple: "nothing." God has favor upon us, His people, who do not deserve His majesty, glory, love, or grace. God grants to us what He gives out of sheer love and abundance. Why are any of us so favored? We tarry on, we move through our days, we make faithful decisions (or at least we try). We try to honor God with our lives, but none of this adds up to "deserving" God's favor. Blessed are those upon whom God's favor rests. As we settle into this season of Advent, waiting and longing for the favor of God, let us be ever present to the fact that God's favor is an undeserved gift we receive and His presence can knock at our door any moment. Tracey Bianchi, MDiv Alumna and Board Member Why Am I So Favored?