Tag: Pregnant

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, Journey Through The Word, Quiet Time, She, Volume 3

Mary, Mother of Jesus, part 4

Posted on by MaryEllen

Adapted from She, delighting in the women of the Bible, volume 3, pp 35-36

Today’s Scripture: Luke 2:1-6, Hebrews 11:6, Philippians 1:6 and Proverbs 16:9

We can make our plans,but the Lord determines our steps.

Proverbs 16:9 NLT

God’s Sovereign Plan

Pregnancy in the 21st century is far different than in the days when Mary was pregnant. Although the duration of a normal pregnancy remains nine months, there have been many advancements in modern medicine. Parents not only have the option of ultrasounds that reveal their baby’s gender, but also 3D imaging, which allows them to see what their baby will look like, and anatomy scans, which reveal the baby’s overall health and development. Then there’s the decision of where the baby will be born. In the days of Jesus, I suppose home births would have been the typical option, and while they remain an option, there are also hospitals and spa-like birthing centers to pick from. Along with these choices, there’s the how, including natural, medicated, and C-sections. Then there’s the when option, yes, some doctors allow you to pick the date of your child’s birth, working it around jobs or other life events that you may not want the birth to interfere with. In the days of Joseph and Mary, the option would have simply been a “home birth, which would have meant Galilee, where Joseph lived. However, in God’s sovereign plan, Caesar Augustus issued a decree requiring all to pay taxes. So, because Joseph was from the lineage of David, he and Mary (who was “great with child”) had to return to Bethlehem, the city of David, in order to be taxed. While they were there, Scripture records that “the days were accomplished that she should be delivered, (Luke 2:6). So, just as the prophet had declared, the long-awaited Messiah would be born in Bethlehem.

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah.Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf.

Micah 5:2

MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS, ALSO SERVES AS AN EXAMPLE OF

HOW CHRIST WILL GUIDE OUR STEPS TO EXACTLY WHEN AND

WHERE HE DESIRES US TO BE.1

Reflection and Application

How has the Lord directed your steps before?

The More We Know

As with any government count, this census was meant to calculate taxes and military resources. Mary’s soon-to-be husband, Joseph, is a descendant of David, so they go to Bethlehem to participate (Luke 2:1–5).

It would have been unusual for an unmarried couple to travel together, but the circumstances of Mary’s pregnancy are hardly normal (Luke 1:34–35). The family likely realized it would be better for her to be with Joseph when she gave birth. That Mary is in Bethlehem when Jesus is born corresponds to Messianic prophecy (Micah 5:2). (gotquestions.org)

  1. She, delighting in the examples of the women of the Bible, volume 3, p36 ↩︎

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, She, Volume 3

Elizabeth

Posted on by MaryEllen

adapted from the She study, volume 3, pp11-12

You will show me the way of life,
    granting me the joy of your presence
    and the pleasures of living with you forever.

Psalm 16:11

Elizabeth is a well-known woman of the Bible. She is a beautiful example of faith and of the fullness of joy in the presence of the Lord. We find her story in Luke, chapter 1, verses 5-80, where we learn that she was the wife of Zachariah, the prophet, and she was very old when she conceived. She was also the cousin of Mary, the mother of Jesus. It is this part of her story that we will focus on today.

Not long after Mary learned that she was pregnant with Jesus, the Son of God, she traveled to visit her cousin Elizabeth in Judea. Let’s stop and marvel for a minute at the contrast of the miracles God had worked in both women. Mary, a young, unmarried virgin, has just learned that she has become pregnant through immaculate conception, while Elizabeth, who was described as ‘barren and very old’ in Luke 1:7, is now six months pregnant. I can’t help but notice how their stories accentuate the beautiful truth that: “Nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).

35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 

Luke 1:35-36

While I love the entire story of Elizabeth and Mary, I particularly appreciate the beauty of Elizabeth and her baby when Mary arrived.

39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

Luke 1:39-45

Elizabeth was clearly overwhelmed at Mary’s arrival, but it was more than excitement to see Mary. Scripture says that it was because “at the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s baby leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” This was evident by Elizabeth’s “glad cry and exclamation to Mary,” that “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed.” Elizabeth goes on to question why she is so honored to be visited by the “mother of her Lord.” What a moving and beautiful example of how the joy we find in the presence of the Lord our God affects those around us.

Experience and Application

Friends, I know that I share (or perhaps overshare) various stories of how God has worked in my life – so forgive me if you have heard this too many times. However, I cannot read this story without remembering my own experience with being unable to conceive for eight long and often torturous years. While I realize this in no way compares to the number of years that Elizabeth waited, it did offer me a similar experience as God restored a joy that had long been stifled by life’s sorrows and disappointments. For it was during my pregnancy and the birth of my first daughter that God sent several “Elizabeth’s” to me who poured out encouragement and joy by feeding my soul and mind with the Word that I had somewhat tuned out for years because of my disappointment in myself and in God. The pregnancy itself brought a sense of joy because I had hoped so long for it, but through the joy of godly friendships, He began doing the work of changing me from the Insideout and when that baby girl was born and they held her up to me – I knew my life would never be the same … not only because I had been blessed with a child but because I was filled with an awareness of His Presence in me.

“May we all seek to be an Elizabeth to someone else.”

She, Volume 3, p12

The More We Know

  • Who is an Elizabeth in your life?
  • Who was Elizabeth’s Son?