pure intimacy

Reading through the Gospels--in Luke now-- and I'm looking at Mary.  The most detailed account of her finding out that she'd be pregnant with Jesus is in Luke.


Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” 

Then the angel left her.

I'm pretty amazed by this whole interaction. It makes me wonder what kind of person she was, but more importantly what kind of relationship she had to have had with God!  I'm remembering the last chapter of "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp where she compares the deepest intimacy with God to a healthy sexual relationship in the bounds of marriage.  Basically that it's supremely vulnerable and intense, intimacy with God is spiritual love making in the healthiest form--according to Ann.   Then I remembered a verse: Hosea 2:16, "In that day," declares the LORD, "you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master."  For me, at this point in my marriage, I read these words and see what the shift means.   I love my husband so much, we talk about everything & we love and respect each other (at this point), now I can see that as I have a pretty healthy though not perfect relationship with my husband that we have grown to desire the same things. We work together, we are a team, we are intimate, and I do want what he wants (at this point in our marriage) and vise versa.   There is no, I must do what he says, because now it's all 'I want to...'  Mind you our marriage has not always been like this, we keep seeking God and we have a mutual love and respect for each other that welcomes yeses as much as nos (most of the time).   See The Lord is saying, we can work as a team when we can get to pure intimacy.  I'm pretty sure that's why Mary could say, "I am the Lord's servant... may it be to me as you have said." because she had that purely intimate relationship with the creator of the universe!  It's why God chose her to be the Mother of God-Jesus.  

Psalm 37:4, "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."  My heart's desires become His and He works to give them to me-- team work. Love.