HOPE OF ALL THE EARTH
My Spirit Rejoices
December 17, 2025
SCRIPTURE
LUKE 1:46-49
And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me--holy is his name."
LUKE 1:46-49
And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me--holy is his name."
One of my favourite TV shows is The West Wing. In one episode, a character named Leo tells the story of a man who fell in a hole. A doctor walked by, and when the man cried for help, the doctor wrote out a prescription and dropped it into the hole. The man's priest walked by, and when the victim again cried for rescue, the priest wrote out a prayer and dropped it into the hole. But when a friend of the man walked by, he leapt into the hole!
The first man said, "What are you doing?! Now we're both stuck in this hole!"
And his friend replied, "Ah, but I've been here before, and I know the way out."
Sometimes the best thing we can do for our loved ones is to be mindful of them in their suffering—to jump into the hole with them. Knowing that someone is with us, someone is for us, someone sees us, can make all the difference in the world. For a few verses in the book of Job, the prophet had the best friends in the world because they simply sat with him in the ruins of his life without saying a word. Things only went wrong once they began to speak.
Mary's song, known as the Magnificat, is an acknowledgement that things in the world are not right. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer; corruption is rife, and abuse is rampant. Things have been broken, things have been twisted, things have not been the way they ought to be. We're in a hole, and we seem to be utterly trapped. But the Magnificat is nevertheless an expression of praise and a song of worship because God has been mindful. God is deeply aware and intimately involved. God is present in the pain of his people; he is active in their suffering. And his mindfulness-his seeing us-means that when he does act, he always does so perfectly.
God in Christ leapt down into the hole beside us. We can hear echoes of Exodus 3:7-8: "The LORD said, I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them...""
In Mary's time, God was mindful of the Roman occupation. God was mindful of the contempt in which his people were held. God was mindful of the fact that his temple had been despoiled and his law mocked. God was mindful that things were broken. But more than this, God was mindful that the Romans were the least of the problems facing creation. God's universe itself was twisted and spoiled, damaged and off course. Sin and death—never a part of his design—were a cancer that poisoned everything. But God was mindful. And in his mindfulness, God acted. In his mindfulness, God moved. In his mind-fulness, God stepped in to bring life, freedom, joy.
J. R. R. Tolkien described Christianity as the ultimate fairy tale, partly because it has the ultimate happy ending. In Christ, the divine playwright wrote himself into his play to change the story, to bring about a happier ending than anything we could ever have imagined or brought about on our own. As God was mindful of the suffering of his people in Egypt, he was mindful of their suffering under Rome. As God was mindful of the suffering of all creation under the poison of sin, so he is mindful of our suffering; God is mindful of your suffering.
And in his mindfulness, God has acted and will act and is acting right now. And he will bring joy.
The first man said, "What are you doing?! Now we're both stuck in this hole!"
And his friend replied, "Ah, but I've been here before, and I know the way out."
Sometimes the best thing we can do for our loved ones is to be mindful of them in their suffering—to jump into the hole with them. Knowing that someone is with us, someone is for us, someone sees us, can make all the difference in the world. For a few verses in the book of Job, the prophet had the best friends in the world because they simply sat with him in the ruins of his life without saying a word. Things only went wrong once they began to speak.
Mary's song, known as the Magnificat, is an acknowledgement that things in the world are not right. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer; corruption is rife, and abuse is rampant. Things have been broken, things have been twisted, things have not been the way they ought to be. We're in a hole, and we seem to be utterly trapped. But the Magnificat is nevertheless an expression of praise and a song of worship because God has been mindful. God is deeply aware and intimately involved. God is present in the pain of his people; he is active in their suffering. And his mindfulness-his seeing us-means that when he does act, he always does so perfectly.
God in Christ leapt down into the hole beside us. We can hear echoes of Exodus 3:7-8: "The LORD said, I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them...""
In Mary's time, God was mindful of the Roman occupation. God was mindful of the contempt in which his people were held. God was mindful of the fact that his temple had been despoiled and his law mocked. God was mindful that things were broken. But more than this, God was mindful that the Romans were the least of the problems facing creation. God's universe itself was twisted and spoiled, damaged and off course. Sin and death—never a part of his design—were a cancer that poisoned everything. But God was mindful. And in his mindfulness, God acted. In his mindfulness, God moved. In his mind-fulness, God stepped in to bring life, freedom, joy.
J. R. R. Tolkien described Christianity as the ultimate fairy tale, partly because it has the ultimate happy ending. In Christ, the divine playwright wrote himself into his play to change the story, to bring about a happier ending than anything we could ever have imagined or brought about on our own. As God was mindful of the suffering of his people in Egypt, he was mindful of their suffering under Rome. As God was mindful of the suffering of all creation under the poison of sin, so he is mindful of our suffering; God is mindful of your suffering.
And in his mindfulness, God has acted and will act and is acting right now. And he will bring joy.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION OR DISCUSSION
What do you think about the story of the two friends in the hole? Is it helpful or not helpful for them both to be stuck in the hole? Why or why not?
What does it mean to you to think of God as "mindful" of you and of your circumstances and, more broadly, of the world's circumstances?
What do you think about the story of the two friends in the hole? Is it helpful or not helpful for them both to be stuck in the hole? Why or why not?
What does it mean to you to think of God as "mindful" of you and of your circumstances and, more broadly, of the world's circumstances?
PRAYER
Write a prayer thanking God for God's mindfulness of you and asking God to help you be mindful of others in the same way.
Write a prayer thanking God for God's mindfulness of you and asking God to help you be mindful of others in the same way.