December 16th Advent Devotional

December 16

Luke 1:23-25

When his time of service was ended, he returned to his home.

After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she remained in seclusion. She said, “This is what the Lord has done for me in this time, when he looked favorably on me and took away the disgrace I have endured among my people.”

-Luke 1:23-25

When I first read my assigned scripture, I struggled to see the parallels, for I am neither a priest nor a first-time parent. However, I am in new territory with my career for the first time in almost a decade. The months preceding have not been easy as I have stumbled exhaustively and begrudgingly through the work week. Normally, I would be anxiously calculating moves and contingency plans, but I had to decide the only movement forward was not a choice that I could make alone. Real world emotions came bubbling to the surface. In the moments of reflection that followed, I had to make peace with allowing God to lead the way, not always adhering to MY plan. My need for constant control was overwhelming and I could not manage it alone.

I can only imagine how Zechariah and Elizabeth felt with this new life and prophecy presented to them at an advanced age. A child that late in life brings new concerns but also awakens something in you that you felt you had forgotten. Hope. I’ve stopped praying for what I wanted to happen and prayed instead for the clarity to see the moves God wanted me to make—to remove the barriers for what I thought improbable or impossible. I can always appreciate God’s timing, even when patience is not my finest virtue. Reading Zechariah and Elizabeth’s story inspires me to trust God’s plan for my own life and carefully consider what the Lord has done for me. 

Emily Walker