Mary set out and travelled to the hill country in haste to visit with her cousin Elizabeth. When Mary arrived at the house of her cousin Elizabeth, she was received by the greeting ‘blessed.’ Unlike her reaction to angel Gabriel’s greeting, Mary allowed her cousin to regale her. She was getting to fully understand the meaning of angel Gabriel’s message. Elizabeth greeted Mary by calling her blessed because ‘ she believed that what was spoken to her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’ It is obvious that Elizabeth was referring to Mary’s saying YES to the Lord by rendering herself a handmaid of the Lord. However, there is also another aspect to Elizabeth’s greeting that might not be so obvious to us. 
When Mary heard about the Lord’s favor coming upon her cousin Elizabeth, she set out in haste to go and be with her. For a while, she forgot about herself. She forgot about her own safety as she traversed the hilly countryside on her own to go and share in the joy of her cousin. She had to see her in the flesh and congratulate her. She was happy for her. Although Mary knew that her cousin Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah were well beyond child-bearing years, she also knew that  nothing was impossible for God. And she believed in what the Lord had relayed to her through the angel. She believed that the Lord had visited Elizabeth to take away her shame. It is this that makes Mary blessed among men and women. It is this that raised Mary above the rest of creation and put her on a pedestal. She believed in the Lord favoring another person and was able to rejoice in that fact.