In today's first reading, King David suffers a spasm of guilt when he realizes that he hadn't provided an adequate dwelling place for the Ark of the Covenant, where God was believed to reside. "Here I am living in a house of cedar," David thinks to himself, "while the ark of God dwells in a tent!"

So David decides to build a palace for God. Not so fast. "Should you build me a house to dwell in?" God asks rhetorically through the prophet Nathan. "It was I who took you from the pasture and from the care of the flock to be commander of my people Israel…Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever."

David thinks he needs to take care of God. God makes it quite clear that this is not the case. We are not God's caretakers. God takes care of us. We do not meet God's needs. God meets our needs. If God needs a place to stay, it is unlikely that our assistance will be required.

In today's Gospel reading, we're confronted with the story of Mary, told by the angel Gabriel that she would be found with child, and the child would be the Son of God.

"You will conceive in your womb and bear a son," Gabriel tells Mary, "and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father."

Gabriel's announcement fulfills the promise God made to David - that his throne will endure forever. But this episode also offers a contrast to David's attempt to make God a home. Here, it's as if the framers of the lectionary are telling us, is what God can do when God wants a place to stay. God can reorder the cosmos in order to accomplish His will.

When told that she would be bearing the presence of God into the world, Mary doesn't offer to help. "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord," she says. "May it be done unto me according to your word."

Mary accepts her exalted role with humility and obedience. She seems to know that it is not up to her to ensure that God's will takes place.

The same is true for each of us. We are all called to participate in bringing the good news of the Gospel to our communities, and to be the presence of God to our neighbors. But ultimately it is God who works through us, and God does not require our assistance. Rather, we are only asked to open our hearts and minds such that we can relinquish our own plans and ambitions, and accept the will of God.

It is not easy to accept God's will; at least, it has never been easy for me to do so. I want to set my own agenda and goals for my life, and I am disappointed and frustrated when my will is not done. But in the end, accepting God's will is far easier than trying to do God's will for him. The good news is that God promises to take care of us, and refuses our misguided attempts to determine and do His will for Him.

Bill Peatman writes from Napa.