In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:26–38)
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I've heard - and read - this story a hundred times. It is rehearsed every Christmastime, and I'm pretty sure I could tell it word-for-word without much effort.
I remember acting out this scene in my Sunday School class sometime in middle school, and being Mary, and saying the word "virgin" and having all the boys in the class giggle uncontrollably. Naive me, I'm not sure that I had really thought about the virgin Mary as the VIRGIN Mary until that point.
Anyway, it was the gospel reading yesterday, and I was preaching, so I was the one to read it out loud in front of the congregation, at two different services.
I was unexpectedly struck by the story as I read it (not sure why it was so unexpected!). Mary's question "How can this be?" and the angel describing two impossible and unlikely birth. The news of Elizabeth was particularly moving for me: "And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God."
This is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren.
For nothing will be impossible with God.
These words made all the butterflies in my stomach start to stir. I didn't feel sad or react negatively to these words. As they escaped my mouth to the ears of the congregation, I felt as if I were in a private room, inside my own thoughts, and these two sentences were my own prayers and words of assurance to myself: This is the sixth month for her (me!) who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God (even for me!).
2012 is the year of IVF for us. 2011 was the year of answers. On the cusp of this year year, as I hear Mary's story and Elizabeth's story, my heart is warmed and I feel new energy to keep my faith, and trust that nothing is impossible for God, and that these words mean, for us, that we will one day have a family.
And if so, then we will feel every bit as flustered and blessed as the two women in Luke's gospel!
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I've heard - and read - this story a hundred times. It is rehearsed every Christmastime, and I'm pretty sure I could tell it word-for-word without much effort.
I remember acting out this scene in my Sunday School class sometime in middle school, and being Mary, and saying the word "virgin" and having all the boys in the class giggle uncontrollably. Naive me, I'm not sure that I had really thought about the virgin Mary as the VIRGIN Mary until that point.
Anyway, it was the gospel reading yesterday, and I was preaching, so I was the one to read it out loud in front of the congregation, at two different services.
I was unexpectedly struck by the story as I read it (not sure why it was so unexpected!). Mary's question "How can this be?" and the angel describing two impossible and unlikely birth. The news of Elizabeth was particularly moving for me: "And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God."
This is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren.
For nothing will be impossible with God.
These words made all the butterflies in my stomach start to stir. I didn't feel sad or react negatively to these words. As they escaped my mouth to the ears of the congregation, I felt as if I were in a private room, inside my own thoughts, and these two sentences were my own prayers and words of assurance to myself: This is the sixth month for her (me!) who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God (even for me!).
2012 is the year of IVF for us. 2011 was the year of answers. On the cusp of this year year, as I hear Mary's story and Elizabeth's story, my heart is warmed and I feel new energy to keep my faith, and trust that nothing is impossible for God, and that these words mean, for us, that we will one day have a family.
And if so, then we will feel every bit as flustered and blessed as the two women in Luke's gospel!
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