In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait expectantly. — Psalm 5:3

I started blogging my journey through the Bible in April of 2010. Two years later, I created an online opportunity for others to join me in the study of God’s word. For the first several years, I took twelve months to soak in God’s promises from Genesis to Revelation. Eventually that process lengthened to 16 months, and I now feel God challenging me to an even longer journey. My current plan is to study the Old Testament for the next eleven months, weaving in the truths of the New Testament. In December of 2022, I will begin an in-depth study of the New Testament. Overall, I am hoping to take a full two years to study the Bible from front to back. I will again be using my chronological Bible in order to follow God’s story through time.

There may be several days in a row when we read the same passage as we read before. This saturation of the scriptures will help us to linger in God’s words, allowing God the time to give us new insight. It is often the third or fourth time reading through a passage of scripture when God gives me a new word. We tend to live life in a hurry. We set goals and rush through our completion of each task. We treat our time in God’s words like it is one more thing to check off our list. But sometimes God calls us to stay, to soak, to saturate, to listen.

If you are interested in starting a new journey through the Bible, I invite you to join me. Each day I would love to hear your thoughts on the passage of scripture we are studying. Perhaps the Lord will bring a verse to your mind, or an experience in life that has increased your understanding of who God is and how He is actively involved in our lives. Come and join the My Morning Coffee Facebook page, and be a part of the conversation. Let’s fill the comments each day with God’s truths, as well as ways in which we can pray for each other. Let’s build a community of those of us who are hungry to study God’s word. https://www.facebook.com/mymorningcoffeedevo

Father God, as we start a new year, it is our desire to keep our focus on you. We open up our hearts and minds, asking you to give us wisdom and insight into who you are and who you have created us to be. We long to hear from you as we soak in the power of your words. We invite you to empty us of our own thoughts and desires in order to fill us with the desires of your heart. May our study of the Scriptures bring glory to you, and may we be forever changed. Amen.

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. — Hebrews 4:12

How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.
Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path. — Psalm 119:103-105

It has been a privilege to journey through the Bible with you in 2021. I plan to start 2022 in Genesis 1 and look forward to sharing this time with you. My current plan is to spend most of this next year in the Old Testament, weaving verses from the New Testament into our study. There will be both repeats from previous years and many new devotionals. I am praying that God gives me renewed insight into His story, and I am praying the same for you.

May God bless you and your family during this Christmas season! I pray that God keeps you and your loved ones safe and healthy over this next year. May He fill your heart with peace and joy as you rest in His goodness. God bless you.

Today’s Reading: Luke 2:39-52

The writers of the gospels seem to fast forward through Jesus’ childhood. Not much is written about the time between the visit with the wisemen and the journey to Jerusalem when Jesus was twelve years old. Out of curiosity, we wonder what it would have been like to raise the Son of God. We imagine Jesus playing with his brothers, watching his father build things with wood, or cuddling up beside the fire with his mother after a long day. Most likely, Jesus had a pretty normal childhood.

Luke describes Jesus as a healthy and strong child, filled with wisdom and favored by God. Each year he would go to Jerusalem with his parents for the Passover festival. When he was twelve years old, Mary and Joseph realized that he was not with the rest of their group as they traveled back home from the city.

When they couldn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there. Three days later they finally discovered him in the Temple, sitting among the religious teachers, listening to them and asking questions. All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

His parents didn’t know what to think. “Son,” his mother said to him, “why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere.”

“But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they didn’t understand what he meant. – Luke 2:45-50

Have you ever lost your child, even for just a minute? The feeling that surges through you is far beyond what the word “panic” describes. I get that same feeling when I am at a store and I hear a mother looking for her child. I stop what I’m doing and immediately try to help her. My heart goes out to her as she frantically searches.

This must have been how Mary was feeling that day as she looked for her son – the son she knew belonged to God and yet was very much her child. I know the fear of a few seconds of being unable to find my daughter, but I cannot imagine what it must have been like for Mary to go through THREE DAYS of searching for her son. Did she sleep at night? How many “what if” scenarios played through her mind from the time she confirmed Jesus was missing until the moment they found him in the Temple? How relieved she must have been when she found him!

The bible says Mary and Joseph did not know what to think when they found Jesus in the Temple (NLT); they were amazed (KJV) or astonished (NIV). I have had a few parent-moments like this — moments of “Are you kidding me?!” or “What were you thinking?!” Perhaps Jesus’ parents had a similar reaction. The Greek word “ekpletto” was used to describe the reaction of Joseph and Mary. It is a very strong word that means to knock someone out of their senses, to strike with astonishment or perhaps terror or admiration.

After an exhausting three day search for their son, Joseph and Mary walked into the temple and found Jesus. He was not just sitting among the Jewish teachers, he was listening intently to them; he was asking questions and then responding with his own understanding and answers. Yes, I am guessing that “ekpletto” would be the proper word for the reaction of more than just Joseph and Mary that day.

“Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” – Luke 2:49b

Jesus was drawn to His Father, his heart connected to God. Just as I can relate to Mary in this passage, I can also relate to Jesus. I love those moments when my heart is pulled so strongly toward God that I cannot get enough of Him. I love those moments when I am surrounded by His presence with no desire to ever be separated from Him.

My prayer this morning is that we will all experience a strong pull toward God this Christmas. I pray that your time alone with God draws you like a strong magnet as we run into His presence each day. I pray that as Sunday approaches, we do not anticipate just another Sunday morning worship time but that we rush into His sanctuary with the spirit of I must be in my Father’s house! Let us respond to God’s invitation to spend time with him today without resistance.

Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart. Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people. – Luke 2:51-52

Today’s Reading: Matthew 2:13-23

When he learned of Mary’s pregnancy, Joseph planned to divorce Mary quietly. If he did not draw attention to the situation, perhaps he would be spared the embarrassment and she would be saved the shame. Joseph was a good man and did not want Mary to be publicly disgraced.

An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream telling him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife. This child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit and would save his people from their sins. Joseph was to marry her and name the baby Jesus. When he woke up from the dream, Joseph chose to believe and do everything the Lord had commanded him to do. He respectfully cared for her and faithfully obeyed the instructions he had been given (Matthew 1:18-25).

An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream again after the wisemen came to visit Jesus.

“Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” – Matthew 2:13b

Joseph was not just told to move to another home, he was told to flee — to run away from the danger that was headed their direction. There was a sense of urgency and a strong need for Joseph to respond without delay. The same man of God who woke up and did exactly what the Lord had told him to do when he took Mary as his wife was now responding again in obedience.

That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.” – Matthew 2:14-15

At times God calls us to respond without delay. Not tomorrow, not next week, not whenever you get around to it. Joseph left Egypt that night. He took only the time needed to gather together his family and then quickly moved them to safety, just as the angel had commanded them to do. And then he stayed.

Just as easily as he had responded to God’s command to flee, Joseph obediently stayed where God had told him to stay. To stay is to remain where you are; to stay is to stand firm, to take residence, and to wait. The same strength that equipped Joseph to run to safety also equipped him to rest where God had placed him.

What is God telling you to do right now? Is He telling you that it is time to move on in an area of your life? Or perhaps there is a sense of urgency and you are hearing the Lord tell you to flee — to run away from a situation or to move away from a dangerous environment or a toxic relationship. Will you respond without delay even if it is the hardest thing you have ever done?

Or perhaps God is giving you permission to stay; perhaps God is telling you to remain where He has you and rest in His perfect plan. His timing is always what we need, even when it challenges our patience. So stay…take residence…wait. Be still and wait until you hear Him telling you differently.

When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.” So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. – Matthew 2:19-22

Lord, we sit before you quietly this morning and wait on you. We pray that you will direct us in the way we should go. Give us a heart that responds in trust with a willingness to go if you call us to go and stay if you ask us to stay. Amen.

Today’s Reading: Matthew 2:1-12

Have you ever set out to do something, but lost track of what you were doing or became distracted by something else before you could accomplish your task? Have you ever made a trip to the grocery store to buy something and came back with ten other items, forgetting the item you set out to purchase? Have you ever walked across your house and then became so entranced in a different thought that you could not remember what you came into the room to do?

We live such busy lives that it is incredibly easy to become distracted or to lose course. Life becomes routine and we start going through the motions, forgetting what life is really about or what is most important. In fact, Sunday mornings can become so routine that even church becomes about something other than worshipping God.

GIVE GOD YOUR FOCUS

God wants us to purposefully focus on Him every day, to live our lives with our eyes fixed on Him. Every day of our lives can become about how we worshipped our King, how we spent time seeking Him and entering into His presence to give Him praise.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” – Matthew 2:1-2

We have come to worship him. What a great reminder for me this morning to check my intent when I enter into my quiet time or go to a service at church. I think there are a lot of times when I find myself going through the motions instead of sincerely entering into God’s presence to worship Him. When I wake up, grab a cup of coffee and open my Bible, it would be helpful to pause and consider that this time is not about me but about Him. When I walk into the church, it is not about the people I get to see, or whether or not I am going to like the song selection. I am there to worship God and to learn.

DISTRACTED ALONG THE WAY

The wisemen could have easily been distracted on their journey. The wisemen came to Jerusalem intently looking for the King of the Jews. This was not something they were doing halfheartedly. They had spent years studying for this journey and their hearts were committed to this search. But there was one who tried hard to distract them – to make this search about him instead of about the newborn King.

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him…Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I may go and worship him.” – Matthew 2:3-8

This was the moment when the purpose for their search could have changed. This is the person who could have distracted the wisemen from their calling. This is the time in which their quest could have become about earthly success or acclaim, but the wisemen stayed focused on their original purpose – to find and worship the King of all Kings.

After they heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. – Matthew 2:9-11a

The Message says the wisemen were overcome when they saw Jesus; the NLT says they were filled with joy. When we enter into God’s house or enter into His presence during our daily quiet time, let’s be intentional to truly worship Him. Let’s allow the Spirit to overcome us with joy. Today, let’s bow before Jesus, open up our hearts to Him, and sincerely worship Him. Then we can empty ourselves and offer Him everything we have to give.

Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. – Matthew 2:11b

THE GIFT OF YOUR ATTENTION

What gift can you offer to Jesus today? I can tell you what gift He wants. He wants YOU – all of you, focused on Him and entering into His presence sincerely intent on worshiping Him. Oh how I need that this morning! I want to cherish this quiet start to my morning and rest in His Word undistracted — to soak in the presence of Jesus and allow God to make today exactly what He wants it to be.

Today’s Reading: Luke 2:8-20

That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared among them and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior – yes, the Messiah, the Lord – has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” – Luke 2:8-12

Have you ever wondered why shepherds? Why did God choose this group to be the first visitors to the Messiah? I wonder if they had the same response: Why me? Out of everyone you could have given this opportunity, why did you choose me? I am not the smartest or the funniest or the most attractive, and definitely not the most talented. Why choose me to be a part of this big plan? I am not perfect. I have definitely made my share of bad decisions, and have spoken words I immediately regretted, yet you love me and have a plan for my life. But even as I acknowledge this, I feel fear creep in.

“They were terrified.”

Do you know what it is to be scared to death of God’s plan? There are moments in our life, like this one the shepherds experienced, when we do not fully understand what is happening or what God’s bigger plan is. Our response is fear; yet God calls us to trust Him.

“Don’t be afraid!”

Trust me, even when it means not understanding. Trust me, even when you are overwhelmed. Trust me, even when the path ahead is blurry.

“I bring you good news.”

This is a good thing. There is no need to be scared, no need to worry. This new thing, this change in your life, is a good thing. You may not see it now but trust me and do not be afraid.

“And you will recognize him…”

I’m not going to hide from you. Seek me with all your heart and you will find me. Look around, there is evidence of my hands all around you. If you take the time to watch and listen, you will recognize me and you will hear from me.

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others – the armies of heaven – praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heavens, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” – Luke 2:13-14

Lord, we praise you. You are Almighty and you are wonderful! To you be ALL the glory!!! From the humblest of hearts to the highest heaven, may your glory be seen and recognized. Thank you, King Jesus, for the peace you allow us to experience each day. May you look down on us today and be pleased with our worship! Amen.

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. – Luke 2:16

They did not hesitate, they did not pause. They did not go around asking for advice. They had heard from God and they hurried to do what He had told them to do. Because of this response, they did not miss out on what God had for them. And oh what a wonderful experience God had for them, what a good thing!

Do not be afraid. Trust God and experience all the good things He has for you. When you hear from him, hurry to where He is calling you. Do not hesitate. Do not pause. You will never be the same if you obediently answer His call. Then tell the story – “THIS IS HOW I came to experience Jesus…”

After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. – Luke 2:17-20

Today’s Reading: Matthew 1:18-25

This is how… – Matthew 1:18

Everyone’s story can be started with these three words. This is how Sherry came to know Christ. This is how Scott and Sherry fell in love and married. This is how Sherry received her call into full-time ministry. This is how the Sherwoods came to live in Kansas.

Jesus’ story in Matthew starts in this same way.
THIS IS HOW Jesus was born.
THIS IS HOW the virgin, Mary, came to be with child.
THIS IS HOW Joseph decided to marry her instead of divorcing her quietly.
THIS IS HOW Mary & Joseph were in Bethlehem when Jesus was born.
THIS IS HOW Jesus was born in a stable instead of an inn.
THIS IS HOW shepherds and wisemen came to visit the baby Jesus.
THIS IS HOW Herod came to know of the birth of King Jesus.
THIS IS HOW the prophecy of Isaiah came to be fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.

THIS IS HOW Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.

As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:

“Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”

When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus. – Matthew 1:18-25

So what is your story? How did you come to know Christ? What circumstances brought you to the place in life you are today? How would you finish this sentence:

THIS IS HOW ______________________________________(fill in the blank)

In a trust exercise, our leadership team went around the table sharing a little about our backstory – Where were you born? How many siblings do you have and where are you in the birth order? What is something about your childhood that speaks loudly into the adult you are today? It was a moment of honesty and vulnerability – a moment when we trusted each other with new information and purposefully began a journey to increase our trust in one another for the sake of our effectiveness in ministry.

Knowing where we have been, and how we arrived at where we are today, helps us gain focus on where we are going. As Paul Harvey would ask, what is the rest of the story? As we approach a new calendar year, we have the opportunity to write the next chapter of our lives – our next “This is how…”

Heavenly Father, we bow before you on this beautiful morning asking that you would see into our hearts. Lord, see the desire of our heart to live a life that pleases you. We thank you for our story, for the way you have been with us through the great times and through the difficult ones. We ask for a special touch this Christmas as we hear again how you gave your Son to us — to be born in a manger and to die on a cross. May our hearts be open to any new insights you have for us as we read through your story! Lord, we bring to you the gift of our lives and we give you where our story goes from here. Father, take the pen out of my hand and write the rest of my story for me. I give you creative control of all my tomorrows. Amen.

Today’s Reading: Mark 1:1-8

Awe fell upon the whole neighborhood, and the news of what had happened spread throughout the Judean hills. Everyone who heard about it reflected on those events and asked, “What will this child turn out to be?” For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way. – Luke 1:65-67

WHAT WILL THIS CHILD TURN OUT TO BE?

As a mother, my heart is stirred by this question because it is a question I have often pondered about my own daughters. Don’t we all wonder what will become of our children and grandchildren when they grow up? What career will they have? Will they be successful? Most of all, will they be happy? Will the Lord bless them with a spouse and children? I find myself wondering what God has planned for my girls and pray that today’s experiences will prepare them for tomorrow’s opportunities.

Zechariah spoke a blessing over his newborn son: “And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord. You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins. Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.” – Luke 1:76-79

Daily we have the opportunity to speak blessings on our kids – whether they are small enough to crawl into our laps, old enough to ask for the keys to the car, or grown enough to be out of the house. Our children need to hear that we believe in them and in God’s plan for their lives. Our role as parents never ends. We can still be the one to pray over them, asking for God’s blessings and protection.

This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. It began just as the prophet Isaiah had written: “Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way. He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him!’”

This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. All of Judea, including all the people of Jerusalem, went out to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. His clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food he ate locusts and wild honey.

John announced: “Someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to stoop down like a slave and untie the straps of his sandals. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!” – Mark 1:1-8

HE ATE WHAT?!!

What happens when we struggle to understand the decisions our children are making or the road they are choosing? I wonder how Zechariah and Elizabeth reacted when they heard their son was living in the wilderness. Did they worry? Were they surprised at the details of how his ministry was rolling out?

I can easily see how parents could go from being the cheerleader to the voice of doubt. How easily we can get an idea in our head of what our children should do and then end up being a discouragement to them. That’s not who I want to be. I pray that I continually point them back to God with words like, “As long as you are doing what God has asked you to do” or “Just keep listening to God and following Him and I’ll be here no matter what.”

Perhaps we should look for an opportunity this Christmas to tell the young people in our lives how much we believe in them and in the plan God has for them. Make sure they know God can use them in a powerful way wherever He places them and whatever He asks them to do. Maybe we should look for opportunities every day to essentially say…

YOU DID IT! GREAT JOB! I’M PROUD OF YOU.

Lord, give me wisdom. Parenting is not always easy but it is such an honor and a blessing, and I would not trade it for anything in the world! Thank you for the privilege of this responsibility. Heavenly Father, guide me and teach me what to say and when to say it. May I always be a source of encouragement and a positive voice in the heart of each of my family members.

Today’s Reading: Psalm 111, 113, & 116

How kind the Lord is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! – Psalm 116:5

I want to sit in the story of Elizabeth one more day. She is far from a main character in the story of Jesus, but she is a main character in my story — so much so that I named my firstborn after her. It was important to me for Libby to grow up knowing the story of Elizabeth. It is important to me that my daughters know that when others say it cannot be done, God has the power to say it WILL be done.

If I had a quote wall, Elizabeth would be on it twice. Luke‘s interview with Mary, the mother of Jesus, reveals two very profound statements that come from Elizabeth. We looked at one of those statements yesterday, when Elizabeth said to Mary, “You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said” (Luke 1:45). Now let’s consider the other statement Elizabeth made.

“How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.” – Luke 1:25

Stop and consider with Elizabeth just how kind the Lord has been to you. God is so good and so compassionate and so loving. There is evidence of His kindness all over our lives. What has he taken away from you as an act of kindness? Was it shame from a sin committed or regret from a word spoken? Did he strengthen you for the consequences that could have destroyed you? Was He with you through the loneliness that left you feeling unloved and unvalued? Are you even now experiencing pain from an unbearable loss, or sickness that is taking away the life you loved?

Perhaps there is something in your life that is causing you pain. God might be willing to take that away from you, but consider the possibility that you are holding onto it so tightly that you have stopped clinging to Him. Perhaps it is time to offer everything to Him and let Him bless you with His kindness.

Elizabeth’s pain was probably even stronger than what I experienced when we were struggling to start a family. I knew that, with or without children, I would be involved in full-time ministry. Women today can choose a career or ministry in place of motherhood, and be valued for that decision. In those days, childbearing was considered the highest calling for a woman. Infertility was often paired with a social stigma or shame, often assuming God was not blessing a woman with a baby because of some kind of sin in her life. But Luke makes it clear that Elizabeth was found righteous in God’s sight.

In fact, Luke went on to say that Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. There are a few instances in the Old Testament when someone is described as being filled with the spirit of God, but there are only four people who were described in the gospels as being filled with the Holy Spirit: John the Baptist (1:16), Elizabeth (1:41), Zechariah (1:67), and Jesus (4:14). Once more, God poured out His blessing on this very special woman.

We serve a generous God, don’t we? He is involved in each unique life created, and loves us individually. When He sent His Son, He had you in mind. Even today, He is weaving your story into the story of Jesus, just like He did for Elizabeth.

Do you see this Prince of Peace, born in a manger, as being kind and faithful? That is what He is. The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay, was born out of the kindness and generosity of our Creator and He loves us with that same kindness today. Will you let him take away what you have been holding on to and leave faith in its place? May this next season of your life be marked by a faith that God will do what He says He will do, even when others say it can’t be done.

Today’s Reading: Luke 1:39-45

In August of 1996, after three miscarriages, I received a promise from the Lord that I would have a baby in one year. Time passed between the promise and the pregnancy. I had the choice to believe God’s promise or to spend time worrying if God’s promise would come true.

I wonder what it was like for Elizabeth to be past childbearing years when she received her promise. How much time passed between the message from the angel and her first signs of pregnancy? I wonder if she questioned God’s promise, or if she had a staying peace for what her future held.

During his time of silence, Zechariah had plenty of time to consider what the angel had said. He had time to look over the Scriptures and remind himself of all God had promised to the people of Israel. He could take his new piece of the puzzle and fit it into the big picture.

Luke 1:24 says that Elizabeth went into seclusion for five months after she became pregnant. There is no evidence that this was an Old Testament custom or command so many theologians believe that Elizabeth took time to have a spiritual retreat of sorts to honor God for answering her prayer.

Mary received a similar promise from an angel — the promise that she would have a baby even though she was a virgin.

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth, your relative, is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. – Luke 1:35-38

A few days after the angel appeared to Mary, she traveled to visit Elizabeth. At the sound of Mary’s voice, the child within Elizabeth leaped and Mary was filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:39-45).

Only a few days had passed since the angel had come to Mary. Had she told anyone yet of what the angel had spoken? Did her family know? Did Joseph know? Now here she is, probably still trying to soak it all in, greeted by Elizabeth, who seems to already know the big news. This greeting was most likely more than Mary had even wished for. Mary was not going to be scolded or questioned or accused. Instead, Elizabeth greeted her with a blessing for Mary and for her baby.

“You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said” (Luke 1:45). Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke what I believe Mary needed to hear – what God Himself was saying to her through Elizabeth.

So here’s a question for you – Do you believe? Is your faith strong enough to believe that God is going to do what He says He will do? Are you willing to trust Him while you wait?

Lord, will you give us the faith to trust you between the problem and the promise? In the same way, give us the strength to wait patiently for you between the promise and the fulfillment of the promise. Help us to see that you are working all things out in your perfect timing for your perfect plan. Amen.