Luke 1:34-38

"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"


The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon 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 barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."

"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.


The angel didn't give her all the answers I'm sure her mind and heart were asking. Questions like...

What do you mean I'm having the Son of God?

What about Joseph?

Doesn't God know that people will say I've committed adultery?

Does He care that I could be stoned to death?

How will I tell my parents?

What will everyone think of this baby?

What in the world is happening to me?

Those are only a FEW of the questions I would be asking in my heart and mind right at that moment...or I might just be in shock! Can you imagine hearing that you were going to have the Holy Spirit come upon you and power of the Most High OVERSHADOW you? I can't even begin to imagine what Mary's thoughts were at this moment.

But, when she asked the only question about her being a virgin...the angel reminds her that with God NOTHING is impossible! Isn't that the best news?

Today, we are all up against things in our lives that from the outside might seem impossible. There may not seem like any way out. You have more questions than answers and you wonder what in the world is going on. Take comfort today in this conversation between Mary and Gabriel. Know that God reminds each of us through this story...and the story of Elizabeth's pregnancy with John the Baptist...that NOTHING is impossible with God.

I'm so grateful for that Truth today! Even when it seems like we face the impossible...we serve the MOST HIGH GOD! Praise Him for that today...and cast your cares upon Him because He cares for you.

Luke 1:32

“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 the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."’

I love this verse because it recounts the promises and prophesies of God about Jesus. It reminds us that He will come from the house and line of David and that He will be the ruler of the house of Jacob forever! It recounts and reminds us that God’s promised Messiah was truly to come.

In my daily life today, it will give me great comfort and assurance to be reminded of the sovereign plans of God. Even when I don’t understand how the promises all throughout God’s Word will come to pass, I can believe in faith that they will! Just as for generations, men like Jacob, Abraham, and David were told that a Messiah would come and set the people of free…they never saw it in their lifetime. But, they believed in God and placed their faith in Him and His promises! Hebrews 11:13-16 tells us…

“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”

Today’s verses remind me of the wonderful promises of God filling His Word. There are so many things that I have not seen come to pass in my own lifetime yet…but I live by faith that if God promises them it will happen…through the gift of Jesus Christ all things are possible for those who believe!

Luke 1:29-31

“Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.”

Today, I want for you to meditate on the name of Jesus. What does it mean to you? Look over these verses and allow the grace, mercy, power, and glory of the name of Jesus wash over you today. May we never tire of thinking on this name!

Matthew 1:20-23
"Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us."– A Name that saves us from our sins…and allow God to be with us!

Acts 3:16
“By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.” – A Name that heals!

Acts 21:13
“Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."’ – A Name that is better than life!

Romans 8:1
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” – A Name that never condemns!

Romans 10:9
“That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” – A Name that saves!

Ephesians 1:3
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” – A Name that blesses!

Philippians 2:8-11
“And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” – A Name that is worthy of all praise and glory!

Luke 1:26-28

"In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

Notice here at Gabriel is the same messenger for both Zechariah and Mary! I think that is really cool! Many times we realize that Gabriel was the one who told Mary about Jesus' birth, but we fail to remember that he was also the one to tell of John's birth too!

Today as our family studied these verse together, we were again reminded that we are highly favored by God and that He is always with us! The news that Mary was about to receive would change her world as she knew it. She would hear that she, a virgin, would become pregnant by the Holy Spirit. That could be troubling news! She wasn't formally married and could be stoned for such a pregnancy! Gabriel wanted to assure her that she was highly favored by God and that He would be with her through this journey.

We all have times that are especially troubling in our lives. A child passes away, a diagnosis of cancer enters our family, an unexpected job loss happens, or financial troubles hit us and we don't feel very favored at ALL! Many times we wonder where God is at all in this situation that has rocked our lives...that has changed everything.

You see favor here simply means "grace and loving-kindness." Haven't we received such grace and loving-kindness through Jesus Christ as our Savior? What a gift of favor Mary is receiving for herself from God...but also for all of mankind! Because of God's gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ, we can truly understand what it means to be favored by God and to have His presence with us.

These verses remind us that even in the midst of seemingly earth-shattering situations in our lives, God's grace and loving-kindness is always with us. That is the rock that our lives are built upon through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!

Today, let's be reminded afresh of the grace and loving-kindness of our God. Take comfort in the fact that you ARE loved by God and the He IS with you at all time in every circumstance. He will never leave us or forsake us...because He can not forsake His own.

Luke 1:21-25

“Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak. When his time of service was completed, he returned home. After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion.

"The Lord has done this for me," she said. "In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people."’

Elizabeth remained in seclusion for 5 months into her pregnancy. Why? I studied what some pastors thought on this subject…and they just don’t know. But, what many really think is at the heart of Elizabeth’s act of seclusion was a desire for time to truly praise and worship the Lord. She knew that the Lord is the one who did this…and He had taken away her disgrace among the people.

Elizabeth worshiped God! She knew that He alone was the One who answered her prayers. She also thanked Him for taking away her disgrace among the people. She was never disgraced before God…but He took away the disgrace she endured among those around her. But, remember that He did not do this when she was young…she was well along in years. Even though God had asked her to wait on Him timing for many years…she knew that God was the One who had answered her prayers.

Today, remember that God always hears your prayers. There may be some things you have prayed for years about that the answer has not been revealed to you yet. Perhaps you feel today that God simply isn’t listening…that He doesn’t really care about what you pray. He does hear. He does answer. Maybe not when we want Him to or how we want Him to…but He does answer. We must be like Elizabeth. She saw that God had answered her prayers and she took time to worship Him.

If it were many of us, we may have run right out into the streets to show off our answered prayer. Sometimes we are so thrilled that we never stop to worship the God who provides miracles every day. The One who shows us favor and removed our disgrace by the blood of Jesus Christ! What amazing reasons to worship!

Take some time today to worship God in answered prayers. It’s wonderful to share the answers to your prayers with those around you in joy, but never forget to take the time to worship the One who answered. Truly we should worship each day and all day, because we know God always answers our prayers. It may be with a “no” or a “wait”, but He does answer. Let’s worship the God who answered the prayer of our souls and showed us eternal favor and removed the reproach of sin in our lives! What a glorious answer to our cry from sin!

Georgia Baptist Ministers' Wives Retreat!

I had such a wonderful time this past weekend at the GBC ministers' wives retreat! I was able to go with one of my best friends and to meet another best friend there that weekend. I also enjoyed meeting lots of new friends and seeing ladies I hadn't spent time with since last year's retreat.

This retreat is so great because it really targets those ladies whose lives are very similar to my own. They understand the challenges, blessings, and in and outs of ministry life. What a blessing to have this retreat each year. I was able to cast the vision for our mission emphasis. It was great to see the excited nods of women desiring to minister outside of the US.

I will be posting my daily devotion tomorrow morning! I'm enjoying getting up extra early every day to spend lots of time studying God's Word and writing. Always feel free to comment here and let me know what God is teaching you!

Luke 1:14-17

“He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

What a wonderful description of the son Zechariah would soon have from the Lord! Look at all the descriptions of John. He would be a job and delight to his parents, he would be filled with the Holy Spirit, be great in the sight of the Lord, be filled with a spirit of power, turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

We may not be called to the same task as John literally, but as I look over this list of blessings from God I can’t help but see that we are called to many of these same things today.

We are a joy and delight to our God:
“the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.” Psalm 147:11

We are filled with the Holy Spirit if we are His children:
“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory. Eph. 1:13-14

We are given a spirit of power:
“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7

We prepare people for the Lord:
“It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” Eph. 4:11-13

Today, spend some time thanking God for the blessings He has given you. Do not focus only on the physical and material blessings. But, see that God blesses you in many spiritual ways. He has spoken so many things over your life in Christ. Enjoy this time of basking in His blessing today…simply because you are His child!