Mary’s life shows us the pathway to spiritual surrender. As the mother of our Savior, Mary lovingly let go of Jesus when it came time for him to leave her and follow his call to preach, heal, and evangelize. She also surrendered the unspeakable pain of her broken heart as she stood beneath the cross as Jesus gave his life so that we could live with him forever.
So much of what we experience every day can be lifted off of our shoulders simply by giving it to the Lord. We can follow Mary’s example and prayerfully surrender our joys and sorrows to the Lord and find rest in his loving arms.
— Dr. Barb Jarvis Pauls
WHAT BURDENS can I hand over to the Lord this day? What joys can I give to God?
Prayer: Mother Mary, help me to trust in the workings of the Lord, that I may have the strength to surrender both the problems and joys of my life into the hands of our loving God.
March 18
“I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” — Romans 12:1-2
Paul appealed to his fellow disciples to surrender their bodies as a living sacrifice. This models Christ’s sacrificial surrender to death on the cross. Warning believers not to conform to the age, Paul encourages us to renew our minds. Once that happens, we can discern the will of God for us.
Again, we have Mary as an example, giving her all in cooperation with the Holy Spirit to become the mother of our Lord and Savior. While God’s will for Mary seems quite straightforward to us, she needed to surrender first in order to see with a renewed mind. Mary gave God her body. Her surrender filled her with grace, the grace necessary to become the Mother of God.
— John Holmes
WHAT RENEWS YOUR MIND? How are you called to offer God your body as a “living sacrifice”?
Prayer: O Virgin Mary, thank you for your surrender and your response to your calling! Help me to be open to a change in my heart and mind.
March 19
“You heard me say to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I.” — John 14:28
Being separated from the people we love hurts. Separation can be experienced through death, a loved one moving far away, a conflict in a relationship with a close friend, a divorce, a loss of employment and colleagues, and more. In times like these examples, I have often sought solace in the arms of our Blessed Mother. Mary knows what we are feeling when we are separated from the ones we love. As Joseph’s wife and the mother of Jesus, Mary experienced more than her share of suffering and hardship, and she coped with these events by surrendering her life over to the Lord.
— Dr. Barb Jarvis Pauls
IDENTIFY TIMES IN YOUR LIFE when you have suffered a painful separation from someone or something you loved deeply. Prayerfully invite our mother, Mary, to share your pain and to help you find the courage to give this event over to the Lord.
Prayer: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us as we surrender our losses, our loves, and the painful experience of letting go. We trust in your comfort and hope for your grace in our midst.
March 20
“When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son!’Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother!’ And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.” — John 19:26-27
Women had no voice in first-century Palestine. Their well-being was dependent upon the men in their family who took care of them. St. John tells us that as Jesus hung on the cross his last thoughts were about his mother. In this poignant moment of self-emptying and self-gift, Mary bravely accepted that her Son, Jesus, was about to die. She also accepted the beloved disciple as her son. This could not have been easy. At this same moment in salvation history, God gave all of us to Mary, too. Mary became our mother, the mother of all who follow Jesus.
Mary’s example challenges us to be faithful to God even in the midst of tragedy. With Mary as our heavenly mother, we are never alone to face the perils of life.
— Lauren Nelson
PLACE YOURSELF at the foot of the cross. Consider one way you can welcome Mary into your heart today.
Prayer: Mary, come close to my heart. Be a mother to me; help me to honor you each day.
March 21
“It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” — Galatians 2:20
So many people have a hard time with the topic of surrender. They can’t imagine giving themselves up. Who will I be if I give myself over?
Early on in my marriage I struggled with a gripping addiction. Eventually, I had to make a choice between getting help or losing my family. One night I said to God: “Okay, I’ve been doing this my way, and it’s not working. I need your help.” The moment I surrendered, I started on the road to recovery.
I’m sure that when Mary’s pregnancy began, she had no idea what life would be like. But she knew that she was giving her life over to a loving God. I found out that God has goodness in store. The life of Christ enters us — as it did literally with Mary — and becomes our new identity.
— Christine Grano
WHAT IS GOD ASKING YOU to give over, to surrender to? Can you surrender into the loving arms of God as Mary did?
Prayer: Mary, thank you for your perfect example of surrender. Pray for me that I may do the same.
March 22
“Have this mind among yourselves, which was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.” — Philippians 2:5-8
Paul instructs us to adopt the same attitude Jesus had. This attitude, which is ours in Christ, recognizes the role our ego plays. It warns us that if our egos rule, we are likely not to see God’s plan or will for us. We must empty ourselves of our selves.
Mary clearly had this attitude of self-surrender and embraced the art of self-emptying. How else could she possibly have had the courage to willingly surrender her life over to the Lord? What can we do to model this? Let us seek our Blessed Mother’s assistance in letting go of our egos and the desire to control, so that we may pattern our lives after Mary’s, and become obedient to the Father.
— John Holmes
FROM WHAT do you need detachment? In what ways might you consider self-emptying?
Prayer: Mother Mary, help me let go of attachments. With your help and God’s grace may I adopt the attitude of your Son.
March 23
“When the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it.” — Luke 2:43
Where was Jesus? Mary wondered and worried for three days as she and Joseph wandered in search of their twelve-year-old Son. The distress Mary felt shows in her words: “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously” (Lk 2:48).
Like Mary,