In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.” But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. Then the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.”
Luke 1:26‭-‬33 CSB

An humble maiden, Mary, who lived in an obscure town (Nazareth). It seems like a little joke God played. When a friend told Nathaniel about Jesus and where He was from, Nathaniel quipped, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” It was on a trade route, and there was a Roman garrison there; for pious Jews, that was a little too close to Gentiles for comfort. But Mary was willingly obedient, and God used her greatly.

She was God’s choice to be the mother of His Son, the Savior of the world.  When you are Almighty God, no one is impressive, but humility is greatly valued.

The angel began his greeting by putting her fears to rest (Daniel 10:12, 19, Luke 1:13, Luke 2:10, Acts 27:23-24). Then he got to the heart of the matter.

It is one thing to believe Messiah is coming, and quite another to believe He is coming now, after hundreds of years of waiting, and that He will be your son! Especially when you are a virgin…Kind of like waiting for Jesus to return. We believe it, but as Jesus described in Matt. 24, life will carry on as usual, until it doesn’t, in the blink of an eye! It will be expected for many of us, but oh-so-surprising! Jesus taught that there would be many who would not be ready, and exhorted his followers to watch expectantly (Matt. 25).

What does that mean? It begins with belief:

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.
John 3:16‭-‬18 NLT

Repentance is essential:

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:38 CSB

As with Mary, surrender and willing obedience is what God is looking for.