The story of Elizabeth can be found in the early chapters of
the Book of Luke in the Bible.
Elizabeth in the Hebrew context means “God has sworn”
We learn in Luke 1:5-7 that she and her husband were “Righteous
before God” and that they “walked in all of the commandments and ordinances of
the Lord”
Elizabeth was barren, and aging. Aging…it’s such a harsh word to me… In the shadow
of infertility I find myself feeling very old, with time as my enemy. One of Elizabeth’s strengths was that she
continued to focus on God, and not on herself, or the bitterness that comes
with being barren. I have not been good at this. There are days where I like to wallow, where I
feel trapped in this struggle. Ryan
becomes my enemy, and at times I can’t see the sunshine outside of the pity
hole I have dug myself.
I also see that Elizabeth and her husband Zachariah were
Partners.In Luke we see references to “They”, I love this. The picture I see
is two people that Love each other very much like God’s intends in a marriage.
I love that Gabriel visited Zachariah while he we
ministering in the Temple. This makes me
ponder what ways I can actively minister in the house of my Lord. Orphan Care
and Helping to mentor wives in Organization and Loving their Husbands has been
on my heart lately. I want to focus on my God
the way Elizabeth did, and walk in the commandments of the Lord.
Oh the relational wisdom that this couple would share
with their son and the people in their lives. The years of marriage, of devotion to each
other and their God, the memories and intimacy of two people sharing life
together, it’s an epic love story with eternal impact!
Can you imagine the
conversation between Gabriel and Zachariah today:
Gabriel: ”So Zachariah
how’s your 501K looking , Elizabeth is about to get knocked up”
Zachariah: “Dude….Really….You ARE Crazy”
And that’s where we see the doubt, in the moment when God
offers a miracle. But in our humanness we
forget that God is a God of Wonders, and that we only need to acknowledge and
receive his gifts! Poor Zachariah, no
voice, no words, no way to verbalize the joy or anxiety that he is feeling, the
cost of his disbelief. I wonder how Elizabeth felt about this. Maybe she found his silence quite attractive, they did
conceive quickly after all.
After a healthy pregnancy, and a visit from the Mother of
Jesus, Elizabeth delivered a son. She
praised God for this boy, and appreciated God’s mercy and kindness. Like her marriage she taught her child in the
ways of the Lord and watched as her miracle son cleared the path of the Savior.
I pray that I can follow the trail Elizabeth blazed ahead of me, that I can love my Lord and follow his commandments, that I can be the wife Ryan needs me to be, and that some day I can raise a Child to walk faithfully with God!
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