Verse: Luke 1:39-45
39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”
Devotion
Has anyone ever promised you something and then failed to deliver? As a parent I had to learn early on to be careful what I promised! Sometimes to get a child to calm down, promising something seemed like a good strategy. "I promise we can play that game later today." And then it always ended up biting me in the butt when they would remember the promise right before bed time!
In this passage we see two incredibly important woman in the biblical narrative celebrating God's faithfulness to them. They both received promises from the Lord that he fulfilled miraculously. This is why Elizabeth exclaims, "Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!"
As we read through these Advent passages and seek to apply them to our lives, today I would ask this question: "How have I seen God's faithfulness in my life?"
Take a moment this morning and find a quiet space. Just for a few minutes. And consider, how have you seen his faithfulness? Where have you seen him prove trustworthy in your life? Where have you seen him keep his promises? Where have you seen him stick with you even in the hardest times?
Then turn that meditation into a prayer of gratitude. Take time to recount to the Lord where you've seen his faithfulness, and express your gratitude to him. As we look to Christmas, let's remember the faithfulness of God in our lives to send his Son to save us from our sins, and allow gratitude to overflow as we worship him and thank him.