My soul doth magnify the Lord

Luke 1:46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

Mary's hymn begins with the sentence:My soul doth magnify the Lord. At first, this is not special at all and it seems to be not deep. A very ordinary sense and we do not continue to devote so much attention since. Yet the text is deeper than you might think. This first sentence from Maria hymn provides the core of our lives. Because the soul is all in life. But what do these words mean exactly?

The dictionary gives the meaning of the soul: not the physical part from which man lives. It is the immortal part of the human being and every human being has a soul, just as every human being has a body. But Mary sings not primarily about her body but her soul. She magnifies the Lord with her heart and her mind, from her inner she comes to worship the great God who sends the Saviour. Worship can not go deeper than when it comes from the soul. It's your deepest me that no one else can see but only you feel it. And that's where Mary's adoration begins.

From Mary we must also move this to our own lives. Can we say with Mary? Can we magnify the Lord with our soul? Is that the deepest that is living in you? Then the Spirit is in you to work and he represents you for His glory. Your desires are focused on God and your love for God is unstoppable. You are not ashamed of the Gospel and your life is God. You go then with heart and soul to Him, for He is gone for you on the cross. Therefore, our soul is so important and that is to be preserved.

The soul works from inside and passing through working out. Sometimes it just seems people are full of good things and live life as it should be according to the Bible, but when it does not come from the soul, it is all dead. Just read the letter to Sardis in Revelation. The congregation lives exemplary and is not to notice, but deep down inside lacks faith and love for Christ. We see that not always, but God sees. We can try to keep God's commandments, but if it is just the outside then it is dead. We can stand the whole service with our hands in the air in the church and sing the most beautiful songs, but if it does not come from your soul, it is dead. Harsh words, but it's reality.

But when these things do come from our souls, if we surrender to Jesus Christ, and He provides it unto us inside, then God is praised and magnified. We may just as Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord, and that is why I sing beautiful songs in church and I fall in worship, and so I try to live according to the commandments of God and to do His will. Then we get to our goal: to honor God in our lives.

Advent looks at Christmas and there's a lot we can do at this time. But let's do it with heart and soul. All services are from experiencing our soul, all the good work for the poor and the sick do from our souls and everything else that is done at this time of the year: do it from your soul and the love of Jesus Christ.

Then we can truly sing: My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!