Isaiah 61.8-11; Luke 1.26-38
It all begins with a simple “Yes!” …
The angel of the LORD comes to Mary, with a request, and Mary says, “Yes!”
And so it comes to pass - Mary is the mother of Jesus … the Holy Mother of God … Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Mary says, “Yes!” …
A friend of mine recently wrote - “Say yes until you have to say No!”
Another friend said to me years ago, “I’m tired of saying “Yes!”, but I’ll keep on saying “Yes!” because I’m even more tired of what happens, when I say “No!”
I celebrate with you today those who say “Yes!” to life …
In my senior year in Grand Rapids Christian High School, the spring of 1962 … as graduation neared, my Bible teacher, the Rev. Morris Faber, invited the seniors to come to the front of his classroom to share their plans.
One after the other, this and that, college and career, and all the dreams that a high school senior enjoys … and, then, it was my turn.
I told the class, “I am going to Calvin College, and enroll in the pre-seminary course.”
And with that, laughter erupted … I mean, serious, raucous, uncontrolled, laughter, and I was laughing right along with all them … I’m sure some thought it was a joke, but it was no joke. I had decided that I would be a minister.
Now, some backstory - I was not what would have been recognized as “clergy” material … I’ll not bore you with the details, but it can be said, that if there were a picture of what a high school senior headed into ministry should look like, it certainly wasn’t me.
The class laughed, and so did I.
When the laughter died down, Rev. Faber turned to me … all 5 feet, 5 inches of him - he said, “Tom, I believe you will do it.”
I’ve never forgotten that moment of affirmation … as you can tell … Rev. Faber’s word of encouragement, the power of “Yes!” … has stayed with me all these years.
Twenty years later, I was in Grand Rapids for some study, eating at a Russ’s Restaurant, a local chain famous for its hamburgers … and there, a few booths away, was the Rev. Morris Faber and his wife.
He was recognizable - small in stature, a gnome-like face … there he was, having lunch.
I left my table and walked over to them, introduced myself … Rev. Faber looked at me with that thousand-yard stare common to dementia.
His wife explained to me, and I told her my story … then I thanked Rev. Faber for his confidence in me. His wife thanked me for coming over, and I thanked the LORD that I had the chance to see him again, to thank him personally for his goodness …
Did he understand what I said?
Probably not … when I left, he picked up his hamburger and continued eating … his wife, with tears in her eyes.
“I believe in you!”
“You can do it!”
The Power of “Yes!"
Adults who come from difficult circumstances often look back to one or two people who loved them … someone who said “Yes!” to them, again and again … so they made it … scars on the soul, scars on the body, but the power of “Yes!”
Let’s pause here for a moment, let’s be silent … recall some of the folks who said “Yes!” to you, and offer a special prayer of thanks for them … … …
When others say “Yes!” to us, something happens deep inside of our soul - we begin to say “Yes!” to ourselves … and “Yes!” to the world around us!
I wonder who said “Yes!” to Mary … was it her relative, Elizabeth?
As soon as Mary is with child, she goes with haste to a small town in the hills, to visit Zachariah and Elizabeth … it’s Elizabeth who says to her, Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb … Mary stays with Elizabeth for three months.
I suspect God waited until there was enough “Yes!” in Mary’s life for her to say “Yes!” to the angel … and it’s a strong “Yes!”
Evident in the Magnificat … Mary’s song of joy and justice …
My soul magnifies the LORD, sings our Mary, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
The power of “Yes!”
Discipleship begins with a “Yes!” but we’re not the first to say it … God says it first … “Yes!” to you, to me, to the world …
God says “Yes!” to a million, billion, gazillion, things: love, life, hope, peace, goodness, justice, fair play, decency, honesty, humility, kindness, mercy, truth, forgiveness.
The cornerstone of our faith: Jesus says “Yes!” …“Yes!” to the cross, to the sorrow and pain of it all, the fear and the trembling … Jesus rightly asks of his Father for an alternative, but there is no alternative, to the hard work of faith … so Jesus “Yes!” … “Yes!” to death and the tomb … “Yes!” to all of it … because there is no other way.
Paul the Apostle says it well: For the Son of God, Jesus Christ … was not “Yes and No”; but in him it is always “Yes!” For in him, everyone of God’s promises is a “Yes!”
“Yes!” saves the day, and makes a way … “Yes!” calls for engagement, partnership, compromise, patience, working-arrangement, getting along, and making do!
Mary says “Yes!” to the angel … Rev. Faber says “Yes!” to me … throughout the years of my work, countless people have said “Yes!” to the LORD, “Yes!” to the calling of God … “Yes!” to the work ahead … to the work of the church … “Yes!” to the cross, because “Yes!” is likely to ask everything of us …
“Yes!” is a dangerous word … it gets us into things we didn’t plan on, and sometimes into things we don’t want.
I’ve learned over the years to be a bit more cautious with my “Yes!” … but on the other hand, caution is better thrown to the wind, and maybe more often than not.
One thing for sure: “Yes!” may get us into trouble, but “No!” will get us nowhere.
One of the components of “Yes!” is trust … trust in life, trust in God, trust in others … life provides the ways and means of getting something done … because God is involved in all of this … and, yes, we can do it … because that’s how God made us.
It may be difficult … ask Mary how easy it was to bear the child of our salvation and become the Mother of God.
“Yes!” opens the door to all kinds of things … some of them will be downright difficult … and some of them good beyond all measure …
Joy to the world the Lord is come
Let earth receive her king
Let every heart prepare Him room
And heaven and nature sing
The power of “Yes!” …
It is, after all, Mary’s Sunday …
Hail Mary, full of grace, the LORD is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the hour of our death.
Hallelujah and Amen!
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