Attention
Mary set out and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah-
– where she entered Zachariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting-
– the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Then she exclaimed with a loud cry:
“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is your offspring! How could this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For you see, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped for joy inside me! Blessed is she who has believed that what was spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled!” Luke 1:39-45.
Mary was a maze of emotions on her hurried trek to Elizabeth’s house.
She was going with congratulations on her cousin’s pregnancy.
But to be honest, she needed someone to talk to.
Elizabeth was one of those people who would really care.
We Christians are actually pretty good at responding to a crisis-
– throwing our arms around a hurting friend, calling to check on someone who needs a listening ear.
But too often when someone-
– encounters a victory in her life,
– finds the man of her dreams, or
– takes a new job that doubles her salary,
– our congratulations are cloaked and guarded.
It seems we’re better at mourning with those who mourn than-
– at rejoicing with those who rejoice.
Try going into a new day with your eyes open for the people you’ll encounter at the store, the office, the school outing, wherever you’re headed.
Give someone your full attention today.