In the waiting.

As I reflect on this Christmas season, I think of the times that I've waited. Waited for the bus, waited for presents, waiting for family to arrive. Waiting...a lot of waiting.

As Christians, Christmas is the time where we celebrate the birth of Jesus. The Savior of all man. The Messiah. The Son of God. We look at Christmas as more than presents. It's a time to reflect on His birth and what that means. For me, besides the birth of Jesus, I look at Christmas and the story of Mary & Elizabeth. For these women this was a time of waiting. They both had promises given to them by God and they had to wait for the promises to come to fruition.

Now lets step back a bit. Mary's story began as an unexpected interruption. Back in biblical times, Mary is thought to be between 12-14 years of age when the angel appeared to her. "The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:28 NIV). Now when Gabriel appeared it confused Mary because of the greeting. It's an unusual greeting if you think about someone coming up to you and saying that as opposed to 'Hi'. It frightened her, But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:30-33 NIV)

Now to be honest...if someone said this to me I would most defiantly have a 'say what' moment! Mary had questions and she had concerns. First, she was a virgin and second, she was bethrothed to be married to Joseph. And in those days if you were pregnant and not married there were massive consequences. Mary chose to believe what the angel said to her and she started to wait. Mary had patience...more than I can say for myself in my season of waiting. She had patience to believe that Joseph would understand and believe himself. She had patience to believe that God would fulfill his promise to her. And she had patience to wait for the birth of her son.

Now for Elizabeth. She was married to Zechariah a priest, and they did not have any children. They longed for children however Elizabeth was unable to conceive as she was along in years. While Zechariah was in the sanctuary an angel of the Lord appeared to him next to the incense alter. Zechariah was shaken with fear when he saw him. "But the angel said, 'Don't be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord.'" (Luke 1: 13-15 NLT)

God heard their prayers. I'm sure Elizabeth and Zechariah struggled with patience in waiting and longing for this child. But they waited. They longed for children and they waited for that moment to come. They waited, and waited so long that I'm sure they didn't believe this day would every happen. But they trusted and waited, praying that God would answer their prayer, and if not, He would help them through any sadness they would feel if this dream did not come true. God heard their prayers!

Both these women waited. They waited on the Lord to know that he would fulfill the promises he made to them. They both gave birth to children that would change the world. One would be John the Baptist and bring many souls to God. The other, Jesus, was the Savior for all men. These women waited and served the Lord with all their heart. They allowed God to work in them while they served and waited.

I know, waiting is hard. We think our timing is best. If you are feeling discouraged that God isn't hearing your prayers, or you are looking at this year as another year gone, I encourage you to continue praying. Continue searching and pouring your heart out to God. He hears you. He hears your cries. he sees your tears. He wants the gift of His Son to be your encouragement, your comfort, your strength and shield.

Know that God is with you and loves you. He loves you if your single, and loves you if you're married. He wants every part of you to be working for Him and trusting Him and the timing He has for your life. I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas as you spend time with friends and family and reflecting on the birth of Jesus.

#inthewaiting #seasonofwaiting #gracetobeloved