Renew Your Mind

Mary's song in Luke chapter 1 v. 46-55 is well known. My soul magnifies the LORD and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour The entire song looks away from Mary herself, towards God. She praises Him for who He is, highlighting His character. He has looked with favour on the lowliness of His servant... holy is His name His mercy.....His strength.... He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He helps....He remembers His promises Taking truth and turning it into a song can be very powerful. As Mary sang, was she reminding herself about the God who she worshipped, the God who had just visited her in the form of an angel to give her a most remarkable job to do? Was her song a way of repeating to herself, and all who heard her, just what this God was like? Mary sang of how the ways of God are so often opposite to the ways of the world- and she must have been thinking that she herself was such an unlikely choice to be the mother of Go...

After preaching on Mary, I was delighted to find Julie Clawson writing about her http://julieclawson.com/2010/12/05/second-sunday-of-advent-2010/

I am a product of my modern education- a system which emphasizes logical, rational, scientific thinking. So I love working with friends who are more creative, and can extend my understanding in ways that are emotional, artistic and non-verbal. Theology as mind-blowing as incarnation needs so much more than words to express it. In fact, I suspect that if we try to rein it in or explain it with words, we fall into error which betrays more about our assumptions and prejudices than about God's amazing grace. Art somehow opens those doors which dogma has slammed shut. So this weekend, I am excited to be sharing my message about Mary with a friend who is writing and singing a song, and another who is bringing flowers. May God's presence be made real in fragrance, colour and song as well as thoughts.

I'm preaching this december on Mary..... I love Christmas, and I love the fact that it all starts with these 2 women, Elizabeth and Mary, and this most female of things, pregnancy. I'v been thinking about pregnancy as a metaphor for God's presence with us. it's life changing it's not just for Sundays it's costly and involves sacrifice it's both a gift and a choice it's a time of waiting, looking forward to what's to come