Everything You Need

And the angel departed from her.

Luke 1: 38b

In this portion of Scripture, Mary, a young girl, was asked to take on a huge responsibility, in being the virgin mother of the Christ, the Messiah. She was a given a tremendous responsibility, with what seemed like very little information to guide her. With many questions probably swimming through her mind, as she processed the miraculous news of a virgin birth of the Son of God, the last part of verse 38 tells us that the angel left.

Let’s consider: She was told that she was highly favored and blessed among women; she was told not to be afraid, that a Baby would be conceived in her womb who would sit on David’s throne; she was told after questioning the method that this would be by the Holy Spirit and the Baby would be the Son of God; and she was directed to her cousin Elizabeth who had conceived in her old age. And that was all. Then, the angel departed.

Had I been given such a responsibility, I would have had many other questions. I would have wanted a full outline of the events that would occur and what I could expect in terms of my responsibility. And, I probably would have liked something in writing, so I could prove what the angel had told me to Joseph, my parents, my friends. Quite honestly, I would have been grilling the angel for answers.

But, the fact is, the Lord gave Mary exactly what she needed, when she needed it. What if the Lord had laid out a full plan for Mary, including his brutal death on the cross at the age of 33 while she stood by and could only watch? Could she have handled this at this time?  That was hard to handle after she had raised Jesus and had experienced abundant blessing with Him; to know of His death before He was even conceived would have been crippling to Mary.

The Lord knows exactly what we can handle and what news we need at what time in our life, and that is exactly what He gives us. And nothing more. It can be hard at times, when we feel that more information is needed, but we would be wise to remember that what we know is all we need to know at that moment.

There is a Persian proverb that conveys this idea well: Go as far as you can see, and when you get there, you'll see further.

At this time, Mary did just this: she accepted the angel’s words, and she went to see Elizabeth. When she arrived, Elizabeth had some beautiful words of encouragement for her: “Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”  (Luke 1:45) These words must have further strengthened Mary, for she broke into a song of praise to the Lord. She didn’t have any more information, but she could see further, as she saw what God was doing.

Mary didn’t have all the answers, but what she knew was enough for that moment.

Might we be like Mary, accepting the answers and direction that we receive from the Lord and trusting Him to show us the next steps in His perfect time. Might we wait on the Lord to build our faith in the times of silence, so that when we are given more of the story, we are ready to receive it.

That was enough for Mary. May it be enough for me.