No one can deny that the pandemic has shaken us in many ways and none of us was prepared for it. By this time, you might have tried everything to divert your attention from this stressful situation, but did you know that Mary was once in our place?
Mary was given a unique purpose
Mary lived a very simple life yet she had to be disturbed to face unexpected trials because she was chosen to be the mother of our Savior. Mary has played an important purpose in our lives for she willingly accepted her purpose without asking questions.
Like Mary, may we find our purpose during this crisis. Are you one of the frontliners? Are you doing your part in saving lives? Are you consoling your brothers and sisters or helping them in carrying their weights? Your purpose may be unclear for now but please don’t stop in doing your good deeds and making this crisis a little less difficult for others. In time, you will also thank yourself for what you have done.
Mary was a displaced person
We’ve read stories from the bible showing that Mary and Joseph were relatively poor. Facts revealed that a few days after Jesus’ birth, they offered two young pigeons as their compliance to the required offering. This offering is only accepted from those who are too poor to give a young male goat. Mary then became a refugee when an Angel asked Joseph to bring his family to Egypt. For the second time, Mary had to adjust to a new environment. In spite of all of these, they still managed to live a faithful life together.
27 Million Filipinos are currently unemployed, families are being kicked out of their apartments, while locally stranded individuals are waiting for a chance to go back to their families in their homeland. The pandemic has never been easy on any of us. If you find yourself asking “Why us?”, “Why now?”, or “What will happen to us?” remember that Mary was once in your place and God never left her because she trusted God even in the most unexplainable circumstances of her life.
Mary as a devoted mother
Pregnant women’s waiting period for the birth of their baby includes the anxiety of giving birth to and raising the child properly. It was more difficult for Mary because she had to go through the fear of being judged in their community for conceiving a child outside marriage. Before giving birth, she also had to travel about 90 miles only to end up giving birth at the stable. A situation that must have been scary and embarrassing for a pregnant woman.
Being a parent during a pandemic could be the most difficult situation to be in right now. Surviving despite the sudden loss of a job or a home and having to send your children to school during a crisis can be overwhelming, especially for single mothers. During these critical moments of our life, let’s pour our hearts to God and trust that everything is still under His control. We just have to hold on to his promises.
Mary lost her loved ones too
What do you think happened to Joseph according to the Gospel’s record? We have observed Joseph’s presence during the childhood of Jesus but he disappeared from the record even before Jesus was able to establish his ministry. Some took his absence as an indication of his death. If that’s the case, Mary lost her partner who stayed with her through everything. Just think of how many mornings they woke up together, how many days they ate together, worked together. What’s more difficult for Mary was seeing his son suffer to death.
No words can console a person who lost his loved one but nothing is more painful than letting go of a loved one during this crisis. We can”t even have a few more days to see them, relatives can’t come to to send them off properly, and we have to burn them to ashes even if that’s against their last will but what can we do? We have to comply for other’s safety too. Yes we are hurt, we lost them, we are mourning but is it the same for those we have lost? Or is it better for them since they are already in a place without pain and sorrow? Maybe like Jesus, they also had to live that way to serve a certain purpose.
Mary was chosen by God since the beginning. She has been the carrier of Jesus so He can live a life here on earth and save us all. The pain and suffering was all part of it but Mary poured her heart and trusted the process however complicated it got. These are just few of the evidences that Mary was once in our place too. We may live in a different lifetime, but we are facing the same hardships that Mary went through maybe because we are being called by God to do something important for the humankind. During this trying times, we can also be Mary who carries Jesus within us, a kindness that can save lives and help end all this hardship and suffering.
