Strong In His Hands

Strong in His Hands

Mary responded, “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed.”

Luke 1:46-48

One of my favorite Scripture verses is 1 Corinthians 1:27: “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (NIV). In an interesting way, God used simple Amish families to play a part in the larger story of land ownership in the United States in the eighteenth century. They proved to be shining examples for those around them and for generations to come.

In large part the Amish could acquire land as readily as they did because they were not like many of their colonial neighbors in an important respect. The Amish had immigrated as free people with the ability to control the terms and conditions of their work. During the eighteenth century, however, only about a quarter of all those who came to British North America did so as free labor. The Amish may not have realized how relatively unusual their status was, but that status was crucial to their communities’ growth and economic success.

If the Amish position as free laborers was notable, so too was their refusal to own slaves. . . . No records exist of any Amish family ever owning slaves.

Sometimes we feel as if we can’t do much for God. We look to others with money or influence to make a difference, but in a way only God can, He chose to use simple things in life—simple people—to have the most impact. Mary was a “lowly servant girl,” yet God asked her to be the mother of His Son. Her example of willing obedience to whatever God asked of her is remembered generations later.

Do you believe that God can use you in the same way? He can. Like Mary, listen when He calls you and rejoice at the task, even when you wonder how you’ll ever accomplish it. You can never achieve what God desires, but He can through you. Trust Him in that.

Dear heavenly Father, I thank You for using the weak things of the world to shame the strong. I glorify You today and place myself in Your hands!