December 7 ~ Luke 1:57-64
57-58 When Elizabeth was full-term in her pregnancy, she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives, seeing that God had overwhelmed her with mercy, celebrated with her.
59-60 On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child and were calling him Zachariah after his father. But his mother intervened: "No. He is to be called John."
61-62 "But," they said, "no one in your family is named that." They used sign language to ask Zachariah what he wanted him named.
63-64 Asking for a tablet, Zachariah wrote, "His name is to be John." That took everyone by surprise. Surprise followed surprise—Zachariah's mouth was now open, his tongue loose, and he was talking, praising God!
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Do you remember when I mentioned a few days ago that God promised to deliver Zachariah when the time was right? So why do you suppose He chose NOW to restore Zachariah’s speech. Clearly it was because Zachariah was faithful. He listened to God, and when the time came to obey and name the baby John, as God had told Zachariah and Elizabeth to do, they spoke up and said so! I can imagine this caused quite a stir, because it was probably customary to name the firstborn son after the father, and as the scripture tells us, nobody in Zachariah and Elizabeth’s families was named John.
How faithful are you? When God clearly tells you, “Don’t go to that party,” or “Don’t watch that movie,” or “I want you to put your spare change in the Salvation Army bucket outside of Wal-Mart,” or even, “push that cart back to the cart carousel instead of leaving it beside your vehicle” – when you hear God even in such small instances (or maybe especially in them), what do you do? We must be faithful to obey God in ALL things… from the naming of our children to the tipping of a wait person in a restaurant or putting trash where it goes instead of littering. God is guiding us all of the time… it is up to us to pay attention and follow His lead. It will not go unnoticed. God WILL deliver on His promises. Are you willing to do YOUR part?
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 6 ~ Luke 1:46-55
46-56 And Mary said,
I'm bursting with God-news;
I'm dancing the song of my Savior God.
God took one good look at me, and look what happened—
I'm the most fortunate woman on earth!
What God has done for me will never be forgotten,
the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others.
His mercy flows in wave after wave
on those who are in awe before him.
He bared his arm and showed his strength,
scattered the bluffing braggarts.
He knocked tyrants off their high horses,
pulled victims out of the mud.
The starving poor sat down to a banquet;
the callous rich were left out in the cold.
He embraced his chosen child, Israel;
he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high.
It's exactly what he promised,
beginning with Abraham and right up to now.
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for three months and then went back to her own home.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
Suppose God led you into scary, unknown territory. It might not be as dramatic as a virgin birth, or it could be something equally terrifying. He might be calling you to change careers or study paths… to give up your dream of med school in exchange for a career as a paramedic. He might be directing you away from a degree in business, music, art, or science to become a teacher of these things instead. He might be calling you to use your computer knowledge to design AV ministries for churches instead of becoming an IT for a major corporation.
You might be facing struggles in your life, and God might be saying, “Take my hand and trust ME to get you through this,” and in your vulnerability and stress, your faith is faltering. Go back and read the list of things that Mary credits to God. Look at how she claims that what God has done for her will NEVER be forgotten. It’s that way for all of us. His mercy really DOES flow in wave after wave for those who are in awe before Him. It really IS exactly as He promised… the question is, are you willing to step up and out in faith and believe Him?
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 5 ~ Luke 1:39-45
39-45 Mary didn't waste a minute. She got up and traveled to a town in Judah in the hill country, straight to Zachariah's house, and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby in her womb leaped. She was filled with the Holy Spirit, and sang out exuberantly,
You're so blessed among women,
and the babe in your womb, also blessed!
And why am I so blessed that
the mother of my Lord visits me?
The moment the sound of your
greeting entered my ears,
The babe in my womb
skipped like a lamb for sheer joy.
Blessed woman, who believed what God said,
believed every word would come true!
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
You know, I think if I were Mary, I would have wanted to go tell somebody about this right away, too! She must have been scared half to death – and excited, also. And imagine how relieved she must have felt to hear Elizabeth confirm what Gabriel had told her. She had to feel better to hear a human – a relative – tell her about the baby. I’m sure this made it all “real” to her… if she had any doubts.
So often, we doubt what God is telling us – or showing us. So often, we want someone to confirm to us that we are on the right track, or we will say to God, “Give me a sign.” I firmly believe we miss out on a lot of blessings because we hesitate. “Just Do It” is a great motto for Christians! You will know when you are doing God’s will. You may not feel a leap inside like that of Elizabeth’s baby, but the Holy Spirit WILL move in you, and you will be encouraged, comforted, and blessed! Don’t waste a minute! Listen for God’s voice and act on His directions. You will be so glad you did.
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 4 ~ Luke 1:26-38
26-28 In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to the Galilean village of Nazareth to a virgin engaged to be married to a man descended from David. His name was Joseph, and the virgin's name, Mary. Upon entering, Gabriel greeted her:
Good morning! You're beautiful with God's beauty,
Beautiful inside and out! God be with you.
29-33 She was thoroughly shaken, wondering what was behind a greeting like that. But the angel assured her, "Mary, you have nothing to fear. God has a surprise for you: You will become pregnant and give birth to a son and call his name Jesus.
He will be great, be called 'Son of the Highest.'
The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David;
He will rule Jacob's house forever— no end, ever, to his kingdom."
34 Mary said to the angel, "But how? I've never slept with a man."
35 The angel answered,
The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Highest hover over you;
Therefore, the child you bring to birth will be called Holy, Son of God.
36-38"And did you know that your cousin Elizabeth conceived a son, old as she is? Everyone called her barren, and here she is six months pregnant! Nothing, you see, is impossible with God."
And Mary said, Yes, I see it all now: I'm the Lord's maid, ready to serve.
Let it be with me just as you say.
Then the angel left her.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
WOW! Talk about a surprise! Imagine being a teenage girl and being told you are going to have a baby! Historians say that it is most likely that Mary was somewhere around twelve or thirteen years of age. Honestly, I think that even in my fifties, I would be scared to death if an angel appeared and told me I was expecting – not to mention that the baby was a gift from God! Ole Gabriel could stand before me all day and say, “You have nothing to fear,” and I would probably still be shaking in my boots. Notice that the angel first told Mary how beautiful she was to God… his version of “You’re not gonna believe this, but I’m an agent of God and this is for real!” I think I would still figure that a) this guy was crazy, and b) I needed to run!
The fact that Mary neither ran nor deemed the angel Gabriel to be anything other than who he said he was is amazingly wonderful. The fact that she accepted this news with grace has huge meaning for all of us. What if she had run? What if she had argued with Gabriel, and God had honored her free will and changed His mind? How did a young teenage girl have the courage, faith, and fortitude to accept this news and serve God – and all mankind – so well? What if that was you or me? What would we do?
And yet, so often, God calls on us to do things that are outside our comfort zone – or downright scary – and we shake our heads and say, “Nope… not me! Pick somebody else!” God puts opportunities to serve Him in our path each and every day, and we make a choice. Sometimes He sets things up so that it is very clear that it is a “God thing,” and we decide what we will do. Other times, the lines seem a little blurry, and the water seems a little troubled, and it is so easy to chicken out and take what seems to be the easy road.
But I want us to remember Mary… this young teenage girl who stepped up to the plate. She didn’t do it for herself. She did it for us, through God’s amazing grace. God chose Mary for an incredibly daunting task. She risked her reputation, her marriage – her very life – for each of us, so that Jesus Christ could come to earth in human form to die for our sins and ensure our place in heaven for all of eternity. Remember Mary and her courage, and when God calls on you to step up – or out – for Him, remember how beautiful you are inside and out because of His grace and Jesus Christ. Remember Mary, and make the right choice.
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 3 ~ Luke 1:18-23
18 Zachariah said to the angel, "Do you expect me to believe this? I'm an old man and my wife is an old woman."
19-20 But the angel said, "I am Gabriel, the sentinel of God, sent especially to bring you this glad news. But because you won't believe me, you'll be unable to say a word until the day of your son's birth. Every word I've spoken to you will come true on time—God's time."
21-22 Meanwhile, the congregation waiting for Zachariah was getting restless, wondering what was keeping him so long in the sanctuary. When he came out and couldn't speak, they knew he had seen a vision. He continued speechless and had to use sign language with the people.
23-25 When the course of his priestly assignment was completed, he went back home. It wasn't long before his wife, Elizabeth, conceived. She went off by herself for five months, relishing her pregnancy. "So, this is how God acts to remedy my unfortunate condition!" she said.
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
I have told you several times that God doesn’t cause bad things to happen to us, and I firmly believe that. But I also believe that we learn in this passage that sometimes, when we question God or fail to trust Him, He moves in a different direction to remind us Who is in charge! I still don’t think God does this to harm us in any way… but have you ever said, “God must really have a great sense of humor!” when something happened to you? Well maybe that was God’s way of getting your attention!
Let’s say there is a weekend shopping trip in your future plans, but you are really short on cash. You want to go out of town with your friends for the weekend to shop. You really want to go, but you know deep down that you don’t have extra cash to be spending on a trip to shop for things you don’t need and can’t afford. You just can’t get any peace about this, so you talk to God about it. You aren’t asking God for cash… you are just telling Him how badly you want to go on this trip. God plainly tells you, “Don’t go… you can’t afford it, and you have no business going.” But you, in your infinite wisdom say, “that wasn’t GOD… that must be the devil trying to bring me down.” The time for the trip nears, and you develop a really nasty cold that sends you to bed for several days. It’s not life threatening, but shopping is the LAST thing on your mind!
It’s just possible that in this instance, God made a decision for you and saved you from yourself… and in doing so, He may have also showed you Who is BOSS! He told you plainly what you needed to hear, and you didn’t believe him. Rather than let you make a huge mistake, and in this case blow money you didn’t have, He moved you in another direction (call it “grace”) and kept you out of hot water.
Now, in Zachariah’s case, God used a really profound way to get his attention – rendering him literally speechless for several months. BUT… and this is important… in the end, God delivered Zachariah, just as He promised. And He will deliver US, too. God’s purposes for us are always good… never evil. He is trying to show us things and tell us things every day, and we are so stubborn and faithless! Don’t be like Zachariah. Don’t end up speechless – even figuratively! When God speaks or shows you something, take Him at His word. Believe and receive the good news of God.
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 2 ~ Luke 1:5-17
5-7 During the rule of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest assigned service in the regiment of Abijah. His name was Zachariah. His wife was descended from the daughters of Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth. Together they lived honorably before God, careful in keeping to the ways of the commandments and enjoying a clear conscience before God. But they were childless because Elizabeth could never conceive, and now they were quite old.
8-12 It so happened that as Zachariah was carrying out his priestly duties before God, working the shift assigned to his regiment, it came his one turn in life to enter the sanctuary of God and burn incense. The congregation was gathered and praying outside the Temple at the hour of the incense offering. Unannounced, an angel of God appeared just to the right of the altar of incense. Zachariah was paralyzed in fear.
13-15 But the angel reassured him, "Don't fear, Zachariah. Your prayer has been heard. Elizabeth, your wife, will bear a son by you. You are to name him John. You're going to leap like a gazelle for joy, and not only you - many will delight in his birth. He'll achieve great stature with God.
15-17 "He'll drink neither wine nor beer. He'll be filled with the Holy Spirit from the moment he leaves his mother's womb. He will turn many sons and daughters of Israel back to their God. He will herald God's arrival in the style and strength of Elijah, soften the hearts of parents to children, and kindle devout understanding among hardened skeptics—he'll get the people ready for God."
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
We are in full “Christmas mode” now – it’s all over the stores, television, and even the Internet! But how much do we really know about “the Christmas story?” Oh, sure, we know the “Charlie Brown version.” We know the story we have seen in pageants all of our lives and heard about in Sunday School. But how much do these stories and pageants leave out… if only to save time and condense the story to one that can be told or enacted in about an hour, complete with hymns? So for a few days, we are going to study the story of Christ’s birth, from the prospective of Luke. Let’s see what we can discover that will enable us to better understand these events and how God used them to bless us.
It all starts with Zachariah and Elizabeth. Bet you thought it started with Mary and Joseph, eh?! Nope, it started with this old couple, Zachariah and Elizabeth, who were never able to have children, and now they were far too old… and well past child-bearing ages. Ever want something so badly and wish for it and dream about it, but you never get it? I think we all do on one level or another. Some even wish for a baby they are unable to conceive. Others wish for a career that never materializes, or wealth that never comes, or maybe even that really cool car that never happened.
Now imagine if you were old and gray and an angel appeared before you and said, “You know that thing you wanted so badly when you were younger? You’re getting it now! And that baby/career/wealth/cool car/whatever you wished for is going to bless thousands of people. It is going to delight you and others. It will even pave the way for others to find their way to God!” WOW!!! Luke says that this news paralyzed Zachariah with fear. I’d probably be paralyzed, too, wouldn’t you?!
Notice that the angel told Zachariah “your prayer has been heard.” I want us to focus on this sentence today. Okay, so this doesn’t mean we will get the car, the career, the big house, the cool car, the baby, or even the girl/guy of our dreams. But when it matters… when we are faithful and focus on pleasing God, He hears our prayers. And in HIS TIME, we get answers. They may not be the answers we want, but they will always be the answer we need. We’re going to see in days to come how the faithfulness of a few people who lived “with a clear conscience before God” changed the whole world. That’s a pretty big statement, and I’m not saying our faithfulness and holy living will have an impact this broad, but it will change things in ways we can’t even see or may never realize.
Are you faithful in your prayers? Do you trust God to do what is best for you, even if you grow to be an old person with no visible results? It’s a challenge, I’ll admit. We are used to instant gratification in pretty much every area of our life. Can you do it? Can you follow God and keep praying and believing? Isn’t the Christmas Season the perfect time to give it a try?
©2008 Debbie Robus
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December 1 ~ Psalm 150
1-6 Hallelujah! Praise God in his holy house of worship,
praise him under the open skies;
Praise him for his acts of power,
praise him for his magnificent greatness;
Praise with a blast on the trumpet,
praise by strumming soft strings;
Praise him with castanets and dance,
praise him with banjo and flute;
Praise him with cymbals and a big bass drum,
praise him with fiddles and mandolin.
Let every living, breathing creature praise God!
Hallelujah!
(Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson.Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved. For copies of The Message call (800) 366-7788.)
There is a Contemporary Christian Worship song about “Let Everything That Has Breath Praise the Lord.” I am sure it is based on this passage. I know that I have had a theme lately of talking to you about troubles and how to hand them over to God. But it seems like a lot of us are hurting these days… for a lot of reasons. Just the other day, I stopped as I was driving down the road to pick up a former Sunday School student of mine. He was walking up a steep hill, and I offered him a ride to the top. He told me he had just attended the funeral of an acquaintance from high school who died in a car accident. He needed to walk and just do some serious thinking. This person has had more than his own share of troubles, trials and heartaches this year, and yet, when I mentioned this, he said, “It’s nothing compared to this guy’s family. They did not deserve this.”
The fact is that many people do not deserve the heartache and troubles that come their way. And God is not being mean. He does not cause these things to happen. But He often uses them in ways we cannot even imagine that will bring about His purposes, glorify His name, and bless us in the bargain. Sounds crazy, I know! But this is 100% the truth of how God operates.
So, even when our hearts are heavy – even when our burdens are weighing us down – even when we feel like we are in the pit of despair, we must praise God. Because, you see, God is STILL on the throne… He is still greater than anything we will ever encounter. He is still our mighty, powerful, wonderful Counselor, Father GOD! Praise Him with everything you have – and then some! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
©2008 Debbie Robus
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