Our Lady of Advent flickr photo by Lawrence OP shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) license

Last week we started to think about Mary’s song of praise – a song about a girl who was about to face one of the most challenging experiences of her life!

Have you ever had to face a challenging situation? Maybe think through all of 2024, have you had moments where situations may have made you anxious? Here are some examples (but you might think of others):

• Starting secondary school in year 7
• Assessments, tests, mock exams
• Having some homework (or classwork) that was really hard to do!
• Falling out with friends (or fear of falling out with your friends)
• Getting into trouble

Mary had just found out she was pregnant, she wasn’t prepared or ready, and she had to tell Joseph. She was worried that he might get angry and end their relationship.

In this state of stress, she sings a song of worship to God. We can learn so much from her. In her song she says,

‘God will show his mercy forever and ever to those who worship and serve him.  He has done mighty deeds by his power. He has scattered the people who are proud and think great things about themselves.  He has brought down rulers from their thrones and raised up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with nothing.’ 

^{Luke 2:50-53}

She chooses to thank God for all the good things he has done. This helps her deal with the uncertainty of the future. Remembering how God has been great before, helps her to have hope that everything will be OK in the future.

Next time you feel anxious, why don’t you try doing what Mary did? Take a deep breath and think about all the times God has been helpful before, then thank him.

As you watch this video, allow yourself to feel thankful for the goodness of God in your life:

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank you that your goodness is running after us. Thank you for all the times you have been faithful and helped us when we have been anxious, or things seem to be going wrong.  Even now, as we sit here in tutor time, we can think of situations where we are still a bit worried or anxious. Thank you that you are ‘Emmanuel’ which means ‘God with us’ and you will help us like you have done so many times before – help us to trust you and be filled with hope.  Amen