Blessed is She Who Believes!
Luke 1:45
Blessed is she who has believed the Lord would fulfill His promises to her!
This is by far my favorite scripture and one of my favorite stories in the Bible. Mary, young and innocent, has gone to visit her much older cousin Elizabeth. Both women are pregnant through miraculous circumstances. Mary, a virgin, is carrying Jesus in her womb. And Elizabeth, past the child-bearing age had become pregnant after an angel visited her husband and proclaimed it would be so. She was carrying John the Baptist.
When Mary walks into the room where Elizabeth is resting the baby in her womb leaps in response the the presence of his Savior (in Mary’s womb) and instantly Elizabeth and her unborn child are filled with the Holy Spirit! And Elizabeth proclaims that Mary is a blessed woman because she has trusted the Lord to fulfill His promises to her.
This passage is so powerful and exciting! Pregnancy offers a sign of hope for the future to many people. Pregnancy itself is a promise of tomorrow-new life, new generation. So, what are you pregnant with today?
The Lord has planted a ministry (a desire, a dream, a purpose) inside each and every one of us. Just as the Lord promised Zechariah (Elizabeth’s husband) through His angel that his elderly wife would conceive a son and he would name him John, He is faithful to keep the promises He has spoken to us. Just as the Lord was faithful to keep His word to Mary, He is faithful to us.
He has impregnated us with a vision and He has promised us He will bring that vision to life. It’s usually not an easy process. Just like childbirth, birthing a ministry can be messy and painful and even pretty scary. However, the fulfillment of the promise is always worth the blood, sweat, and tears that we shed. The lives touched and forever changed for the better makes our journey worthwhile. The Name of Jesus being exalted heals every wound and satisfies us beyond measure—when our hearts are truly fixed on Him.
Usually our ministry is birthed out of the place of our deepest pains and regrets, or our darkest fears. Our ministry is birthed in our deliverance from these things, so that we can pull others out behind us. Because only we know what it takes to overcome.
Mary was a young, virgin girl who was engaged to be married. She could have been sentenced to death for becoming pregnant out of wedlock in her day. Yet, she trusted God and faced the threat of death, and I’m sure many fears of rejection and shame, to walk the path He called her to.
Elizabeth and Zechariah had been married for many years and had never had children. They had given up hope. I’m sure this was something that caused them immense pain and regret, as I’ve seen infertility do to couples I know personally. Yet, here they were, no longer expecting a miracle…no longer expecting the empty space of her womb to be filled…and the Lord made the most unexpected of moves in their lives. He turned their pain and emptiness into hope and fulfillment of prophecy.
Anyone who has read my testimony knows that I haven’t had it easy, by choice or circumstance. But I’ve chosen to believe the promises the Lord has made to me. I’ve chosen to follow Him wherever He may lead. And I have chosen to trust Him and hold on for dear life when its darkest and coldest and the pain and fear are gripping me. I hold on to Jesus. I hold on the His promises. And I look forward to the new life, new ministries, being birthed.
As a woman of God, I hold on to the words that declare me a blessed woman! Because I believe the Lord will fulfill His promises to me!
Blessed is she who has believed the Lord would fulfill His promises to her!
This is by far my favorite scripture and one of my favorite stories in the Bible. Mary, young and innocent, has gone to visit her much older cousin Elizabeth. Both women are pregnant through miraculous circumstances. Mary, a virgin, is carrying Jesus in her womb. And Elizabeth, past the child-bearing age had become pregnant after an angel visited her husband and proclaimed it would be so. She was carrying John the Baptist.
When Mary walks into the room where Elizabeth is resting the baby in her womb leaps in response the the presence of his Savior (in Mary’s womb) and instantly Elizabeth and her unborn child are filled with the Holy Spirit! And Elizabeth proclaims that Mary is a blessed woman because she has trusted the Lord to fulfill His promises to her.
This passage is so powerful and exciting! Pregnancy offers a sign of hope for the future to many people. Pregnancy itself is a promise of tomorrow-new life, new generation. So, what are you pregnant with today?
The Lord has planted a ministry (a desire, a dream, a purpose) inside each and every one of us. Just as the Lord promised Zechariah (Elizabeth’s husband) through His angel that his elderly wife would conceive a son and he would name him John, He is faithful to keep the promises He has spoken to us. Just as the Lord was faithful to keep His word to Mary, He is faithful to us.
He has impregnated us with a vision and He has promised us He will bring that vision to life. It’s usually not an easy process. Just like childbirth, birthing a ministry can be messy and painful and even pretty scary. However, the fulfillment of the promise is always worth the blood, sweat, and tears that we shed. The lives touched and forever changed for the better makes our journey worthwhile. The Name of Jesus being exalted heals every wound and satisfies us beyond measure—when our hearts are truly fixed on Him.
Usually our ministry is birthed out of the place of our deepest pains and regrets, or our darkest fears. Our ministry is birthed in our deliverance from these things, so that we can pull others out behind us. Because only we know what it takes to overcome.
Mary was a young, virgin girl who was engaged to be married. She could have been sentenced to death for becoming pregnant out of wedlock in her day. Yet, she trusted God and faced the threat of death, and I’m sure many fears of rejection and shame, to walk the path He called her to.
Elizabeth and Zechariah had been married for many years and had never had children. They had given up hope. I’m sure this was something that caused them immense pain and regret, as I’ve seen infertility do to couples I know personally. Yet, here they were, no longer expecting a miracle…no longer expecting the empty space of her womb to be filled…and the Lord made the most unexpected of moves in their lives. He turned their pain and emptiness into hope and fulfillment of prophecy.
Anyone who has read my testimony knows that I haven’t had it easy, by choice or circumstance. But I’ve chosen to believe the promises the Lord has made to me. I’ve chosen to follow Him wherever He may lead. And I have chosen to trust Him and hold on for dear life when its darkest and coldest and the pain and fear are gripping me. I hold on to Jesus. I hold on the His promises. And I look forward to the new life, new ministries, being birthed.
As a woman of God, I hold on to the words that declare me a blessed woman! Because I believe the Lord will fulfill His promises to me!
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