So Mary said, “Yes, I am a servant of the Lord;
let this happen to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
Luke 1:38 New English Translation
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Mary first conceived Jesus in faith and then in the flesh,
when she said “yes” to the message God gave her through the angel.
What does this mean?
It means that God did not want to become man by bypassing our freedom;
he wanted to pass through Mary’s free assent, through her “yes.”
He asked her: “Are you prepared to do this?” And she replied: “Yes.”
Pope Francis
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Many of us are willing to obey God,
but only if He explains His reasons to our satisfaction.
But is that really obedience?
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If you tell God no because
He won’t explain the reason He wants you to do something,
you are actually hindering His blessing.
But when you say yes to Him,
all of heaven opens to pour out His goodness and reward your obedience.
What matters more than material blessings
are the things He is teaching us in our spirit.
Charles Stanley
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Oh, that we would have such faith and trust to lay down our own hopes and dreams
to answer yes to each of God’s opportunities to be part of his plans and purposes.
Sandy Kirby Quandt