The Wind Cries

Luke 1:26-33

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

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A broom is drearily sweeping
Up the broken pieces of yesterdays life
Somewhere a queen is weeping
Somewhere a king has no wife
And the wind, it cries Mary

"The Wind Cries Mary" by Jimi Hendrix

We are currently in the sixth month of the year according to the Jewish calendar. That makes the date of our dear Savior's birth nine months away. It seems like the wrong time to consider Christmas, but a nine-month pregnancy being what it is, the time is upon us to consider this passage.

So imagine you're a teenage girl. I don't mean eighteen or nineteen either, I mean thirteen, maybe fifteen if you're an old maid. You're a virgin because you've followed society's rules. Then you hear these magical words, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” Can life get any better than that?

Then you hear these words, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.” Have you ever noticed when people, even angels say “Do not be afraid” it's time to duck? Those may well be the international signal for “Look out!”

Mary was in for something different. She was a good girl, she did the right things the right way and suddenly everyone is going to think she's a whore! It's logical, it's sensible. Then again, God's wisdom is our folly and vice-versa. You can't blame her for thinking “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you” is a cruel hoax.

Mary was told of her son's future. She was told that he would be great, the Son of the Most High. She was told that he would have the throne of David and reign over the house of Jacob forever. She was told of his infinite reign. It must have been a reassurance, but still...

Mary's life suddenly featured a broom sweeping up the broken pieces of yesterday's life. It wouldn't be easy. She would eventually be shipped off to her cousin Elizabeth's house. There she would be blessed by Elizabeth and her child. It wouldn't be easy, but she would be blessed.

By her blessing the world would be blessed.

Her pregnancy would not be easy. She would be doubted by her betrothed and by her people. She would be forced to ride in the dead of winter in the wilderness. She would give birth in a cave and her baby placed in a feed trough. He would fulfill what the angel promised and more.

"And more" happens next week, Holy Week. Mary wasn't told about this. Surely it would have broken her heart then as much as it did thirty-some years later. And as it was on Easter Sunday so it is today, the wind cries Mary.