Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior." The spontaneous response of a grateful child is praise. The person who has come to really know the Lord and fellowships intimately with Him will sing to the Lord with the deepest heartfelt praise possible. Mary was completely overwhelmed, realizing how God had chosen her. She sang one of the most profound expressions of praise found anywhere in scripture. It is called the Magnificat. God created us to praise and it will be our heavenly occupation for all of eternity.
If we stop and meditate on all that God has done, is doing, and has promised to do in our lives---both our private and public praise would bring unbounded worship. If our lives are not full of praise we may have lost our awareness and appreciation of the bountiful activity of God in our lives. Just like Mary we must never take for granted all that God has gifted us with in our lives. We must at this time of Christmas be made more aware of all the countless blessings God has poured out upon us, our fellow believers and our families. It is not something that has to be manipulated or orchestrated if it is a true expression of our thankful hearts and wonder-filled lives that have encountered the Holy God who gifted His Son to the world with love.
One of the things I love about this year's Christmas musical is that it ends in great worship and praise of this great gift-giving act of our gracious God, who split the heavens open with "Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased." Hallelujah! mjm
