Why Me?

And the angel came in unto her, and said, “Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, “Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.” Luke 1:28-30

As we come into the Christmas season, we’re again confronted with the wonder of it. Many times, as we get older, this wonder fades. We may think, “It’s not really for me. It’s just for little kids.” It may be that we become so familiar with the story, we begin to think it boring. While some might neglect Christmas because of disbelief or disinterest, I think the main reason for our bordom is that we get too busy to really stop and think about what the season is all about.

Every facet of the Christmas story is meant to cause wonder. Every element of the story goes against what a person of that day would expect a god to do. Even the religious Jewish person would be amazed how over-the-top Jehovah had acted … God coming in the likeness of sinful flesh to condemn sin in the flesh! (Rom 8.3). Even in their wildest imaginations, none of the prophets had seen this one coming. They had talked about a Messiah but never imagined that God Himself would be that Messiah!

I believe, therefore, that Mary’s wonder of the Advent is a good example of how we should react when faced with surprising circumstances. We should bring the wonder of these “why me” things to mind when bad things happen to us.

Many times, we ask the question, “Why me?” in hard times. While I don’t think there’s anything particularly wrong with this question, I don’t always think it’s helpful. Asking the why questions tends to lesson the wonder of God’s graciousness. The problem is that our nature’s set position is towards complaining. A good way to illustrate this is to examine all the instances when we ask “why me.” How many times do we ask “why me” in the good times with the same passion that we do in the bad times? We’re quick to complain to God when things don’t go our way but aren’t as quick to stop and ask “why me” at the simple blessings of life.

Think about something as simple as getting a glass of water at a restaurant. Do you marvel, “Why was I born where I can get clean water?” We take that little thing for granted, but 1.1 billion people don’t have access to clean water, and 5 million people a year die from water-related illnesses.¹ The main component behind thankfulness and wonder is realizing that God is under no obligation to bless me. That’s what is so amazing; not only did He let humanity live, but He provided a saving covenant for us (Gen 3.15, 21). That would be like not only pardoning a criminal guilty of the most horrific crime but also handing over a huge inheritance to him to top it all off.

With these thoughts in mind, take some time to contemplate the following:

Why did God choose to come into this dusty, dirty world laden with sin? Why did God lay aside the benefits of His home in heaven for me? (Luke 1:31-33) Why did He trade His throne for a manger for me? (Rev. 4:2-3) Why did He trade the company of the magnificent beings in heaven for the sheep and cattle of a barn for me? (Rev. 4:6-7) Why did He exchange the worship of these magnificent being for the lowly, imperfect praise of shepherds and maji for me? (Rev. 4:8-11)

Why did God choose to reveal Himself to me? Why has God chosen to bless the world through me? Couldn’t someone else do a better job for God than just an ordinary person like me (Luke 1:27, 48)? That’s the wonder: He chose me to be a blessing to the world over the rich and powerful! God didn’t pick me because He needed me, or I could do something for you that others couldn’t. He didn’t need to use a human or me to save the world. God would have been better off using angels, dreams, and appearances to spread the Gospel. People just mess it up and make a mess. God chose to let me in on His plan to show His Greatness and love for me!

Why has God blessed me? (Luke 1:30) Who am I that God would think of me? I’m just an ordinary person; now everyone will know my name. (Luke 1:48) When God gets done with me, people think I’m more blessed than: the strong (Luke 1:51), the people who have something to be proud about (Luke 1:51). Why does God show His love by giving me food (Luke 1:53)? Why should God give me all these good things when I can’t pay Him back what the blessings are worth? Mary was not blessed because of any special merit she owned. Mary was blessed because of what God had done through her and for her (Luke 1:49).

Why did God provide a Savior for me? (Luke 1:46-50) Jesus came to provide more than the possibility of salvation. If He came for just the possibility of salvation, He didn’t come to establish a personal relationship with anyone. Jesus, however, was more than a barker at a carnival hoping someone would listen to Him. Later, in Chapter 15, Luke tells us that God is like one who goes out to find the lost sheep, the coin, the son. God wasn’t going to let Mary’s weakness, hunger, her humble state, or her lostness to keep her from Him. Mary was amazed at God’s salvation, because she knew how lowly she was. God’s gracious acts towards her were unexpected, because she knew she didn’t deserve them. Who can lay claim to God and say, “He is mine?” But yet Mary could say in Luke 1.46-47, “My God.”

So God has given us a lot that should make us say, “Why me?” about His graciousness. We should set our minds on the things that make us wonder at God’s graciouness to us. It begins with realizing we don’t deserve God’s goodness. We should marvel that God traded the splendor of heaven for earth. We should wonder how God reveals Himself to us and blesses us … that He should provide a Savior for me. What an amazing grace that He should bless me and then include me in His plan to bless others!

God promises to bless us when we admit our helplessness. God doesn’t just leave it up to the helpless to help themselves. The whole theme of Luke is “God loves to reverse the condition of the poor, weak, and powerless” (Luke 1:51-53). God does for the weak and powerless what they can’t do for themselves. So if you’re weak, poor, or in need, you’re in the perfect place for God to bless you. He will not bless those who are self-sufficient!

Humility will preserve our sense of wonder towards God’s graciousness. Christians can’t experience the amazement of Christmas without a sense of unworthiness. We develop a demanding spirit when we think God owes us. Humility is knowing that God, by His very nature, loves to work, but he also acts according to His purposes and not our expectations.

¹http://www.geotimes.org/may05/feature_worldwater.html

• Email This Page to a Friend
• Print this Page