“Hail Mary, Full of Grace”: Timeless Principles of Motherhood for Raising World Changers
In greeting Mary, the appointed mother of Christ, Angel Gabriel declared a timeless attribute of motherhood that is necessary for raising world changers. "Hail Mary, Full of Grace," the angel greeted. This greeting suggests that the deciding factor in Mary’s selection as the mother of Jesus was that she was full of grace. For the inquiring mind, this greeting begs many questions. Why grace? Why not Hail Mary, Full of Strength? Or Hail Mary, Full of Wisdom? How about Hail Mary, Full of Peace? Or even Hail Mary, Full of Compassion? Why grace? The main point of this piece is that grace is a key part of raising children who will grow up to change the world.
Mary’s task of birthing the Messiah was not a surrogacy arrangement, whereby the womb of Mary would be used to usher the child into this world and the baby would afterwards be taken to the temple to be raised by priests and Levites. Not at all! Mary was chosen to deliver and raise the child into an adult who would save God’s world. The Savior of the world will have to be nurtured and molded until the time comes when He will be mature enough to launch out into the world.
The Miriam Webster Dictionary offers quite a few definitions of grace. We shall narrow it down to two definitions here. The first definition of grace is that it is "unmerited divine assistance given to humans for their regeneration or sanctification." The second is that grace is a "charming or attractive trait or characteristic."
The more popular understanding of Angel Gabriel’s greeting is apparently based on the first definition of grace. Here we see that Mary found such a level of unmerited favor in God’s sight that her womb was chosen to carry the Savior of humanity. There is no human being worthy of carrying God’s only begotten son. It was not merited by Mary but was a result of "unmerited divine assistance." As far as motherhood is concerned, no woman is deserving of being a mother. It is a grace that the good Lord bestows on women, and no one should ever take it for granted. No woman, who has been graced with motherhood, should look down on or scorn another who is unable to access that divine grace. Motherhood is unmerited by all fallen descendants of Eve. Yet, in His infinite mercy, God has allowed many women to become mothers.
Being an unmerited favor from God, motherhood is not to be taken lightly. Motherhood is a calling that should be celebrated every second of the day and therefore be given the attention it deserves without regrets or distractions. A child raised by an attentive and gracious mother grows up to be a confident, self-assured adult. Confident and self-assured adults are the stuff world changers are made of. Raising children is not a distraction from a career or a full stop to "enjoying life" in the form of long nights out, partying and solo or couple only vacations. Motherhood is not a necessary but unfortunate event that leads to weight gain, a dull life, career stagnation, etc. Being a mother is a unique chance for a woman to change the world for future generations.
Another less talked-about aspect of grace focuses on the second dictionary definition, which is about having a personal charm. In this sense, a gracious woman’s personality is gentle, respectful, joyful, compassionate, and energetic. It was these virtues Mary possessed that God saw and chose her to nurture his only begotten son into adulthood. Being a person of grace means being a gentle person, which manifests in the way we think, talk, and act. A gentle mother listens, coaxes, and lovingly guides a child in the right direction. A gracious mother does not hold on to a child’s offense but believes in the best and calls out the best in the child. A gracious mother is respectful of a child’s personality and personhood. She never compares her child (or children) with other children but makes efforts to build self-esteem and self-respect in her children. A woman full of grace is compassionate. It reflects in the way she treats her child, her family, her friends and the people around her. Her well of mercy never dries up. She is always reaching out to help those in need as much as she is able to. Her child learns from her and begins to cultivate compassion as well. A gracious woman is joyful and peaceful because she has put her trust in God and is anxious for nothing. Her joy spreads like an air-conditioner in her home, keeping the climate relaxing, enjoyable and comfortable.
Finally, a gracious woman is energetic. She has mental, emotional and physical energy. Being gracious entails being a generous giver of energy, time and other such resources. She depends on the Lord and spends time in God’s presence, worshipping and praying her heart out to the Most High. That is where she draws her emotional energy. In the place of studying God’s word and trying to put it into practice, she draws mental and emotional strength. In the place of service, she exerts herself physically in her endeavors by fasting and praying in the spirit; by so doing, she is also strengthened in her physical body. The energy of a gracious woman is contagious. She spreads it to her husband, children and other members of her household, as well as anyone else she comes across.
The next generation of transformational leaders and world changers will be molded by gracious mothers. These are women who are grateful for the gift of motherhood, women who consider it a calling and an unmerited favor to be entrusted with the task of raising God’s children. These mothers, full of grace, are cultivating, in the place of prayer and supplication, the virtues of gentility, respect, a joyful heart and boundless energy. The world is watching and waiting for more gracious mothers to give birth to and raise more world changers.