"Looking for Lovely"

Did you enjoy music yesterday? I have wondered if anyone found a new artist, album, or genre of music and listened all the way through. It’s been so fun to practice some of Annie’s “Looking for Lovely” moments. I haven’t done them all. But, I’m grateful for the creative ways we’ve been encouraged to find the lovely in our regular lives.

Today, I wanted us to find a song in God’s Word to study all the way through. I was sure we’d go to Psalms. That makes the most sense, right? I’d landed on Psalm 23 and had a few different ideas about how to break it down for our study today. Then, God changed my mind. He took me to a beautiful song in the New Testament written by a very young girl who’d just been told her life was changing forever.

“And Mary sang this song,

‘My soul is ecstatic, overflowing with praises to God! My spirit bursts with joy over my life-giving God! For he set his tender gaze upon me, his lowly servant girl. And from here on, everyone will know that I have been favored and blessed. The Mighty One has worked a mighty miracle for me; holy is his name! Mercy kisses all who fear him, from one generation to the next. Mighty power flows from him to scatter all those who walk in pride. Powerful princes he tears from their thrones, and he lifts up the lowly to take their place. Those who hunger for him will always be filled, but the smug and self-satisfied he will send away empty. Because he can never forget to show mercy, he has helped his chosen servant, Israel, keeping his promises to Abraham and to his descendants forever.’”

Luke 1:46-55 (TPT)

As I was reading and typing this song, Mary’s song, several things stuck out to me. I’d love for us to consider them together.

1. Mary was overflowing with joy in her calling even though her life had been disrupted in many uncomfortable ways. I’d like to dismiss her joy by saying that she was so young and didn’t really understand what being Jesus’ mother would mean. Of course, she couldn’t understand it all. She was most likely a teenager, though. We all know how uncertain life felt as a teenager. Most of us can remember the way our changing bodies and lives made us irritable one moment and giddy the next. If you’re like me, the teenage to young adult years were marked with dramatic flair for anything that didn’t seem or feel like part of the self-made plan.

Yet, Mary heard this unexplainable message, and she was filled with overwhelming peace. Facing the possibility of being completely outcast and set aside for her situation, she was overcome with a joy that overflowed into song. Internal encounters with the One, True God mark our lives in ways that allow us to rest and celebrate even during discomfort and uncertainty. There was a lot Mary still didn’t know. She sang anyway!

2. Mary’s moment with God caused her to go back and remember God’s faithful moments throughout history. Maybe this was Mary’s plan to fight the fear and uncertainty of what would come next. Remembering God in every season gives us the strength to fully trust Him for the unknown future. As I have read and studied today, it seems more appropriate to me that Mary’s personal encounter with God connected the dots of her faith history. Suddenly, everything she’d been told about Him became her personal reality. So, she sang.

Like Annie, I don’t have a history of music in my home. I played a few instruments. Well, I tried to learn to play a few instruments (piano, cello, French horn). It was somewhat tragic and short-lived. I sang in school and church choirs (mostly for the fellowship because everyone else was doing it). What I’m telling you is that music has not ever been my thing, and songwriting is a laughable task. But let’s do it anyway.

As our closing today, let’s write a short song to God and let that be our prayer. I promise you I will be using Mary’s as an outline and will simply replace some of her words with my own experience. Join me in a cheater’s songwriting experience OR creatively write your own. Could we allow ourselves to be overcome in God’s presence?

I wonder what the album of our praises sound like to our Father. I imagine He’s smiling over us as He receives the beauty of our worship-filled gratitude.