Advent on the Blog: Our Dream, His Time

Lying on her bed, she smiled up into the darkness. Beside her, her beloved Zechariah (his story is told here) snored softly, a sound she had lovingly endured for many years. Her hand rested on her stomach as she felt the stirring of a young life inside her. Never before in all her years had she experienced the wonder of such a feeling, and she reveled in its pain and pleasure. 

Elizabeth, the barren one, the aged one, was going to have a baby! 

It had seemed like a dream months ago when her husband walked slowly out of the Holy Place with a look of awe on his face. His eyes sought out hers first, and with a look of wonder he had mouthed the words, "a son" to her. Later, when they were alone, he wrote and talked with his hands to relate to her the incredible incident in which he had seen an angel from God. The angel had told him they were to have a son, and this child would be very important to the coming of God's Promised One, the Messiah! 

His name was to be John, which meant God's gracious gift. He would be a gift to this old couple and a gift to God's people. Little did they know that the entire world would one day rise up and honor the name and ministry of John the Baptizer. 

At first she was in a daze. She had all but given up hope of ever becoming a mother. Every woman in Israel had the secret dream of becoming a mother, especially the mother of God's Deliverer. Those who could not have children were scorned. They were considered cursed, under God's sentence of barrenness because of Divine disapproval. Many a night Elizabeth had stared into the darkness, tears running down her cheeks and onto her pillow as she pleaded with God to show her what she had done wrong. Whatever it was, she would make it right! She had tried with all her heart to serve the Lord and her husband faithfully. Her heart convicted her of nothing, yet her womb was barren. Even Zechariah's gentle strength, reminding her of his love and God's love for her, did not remove the ache in her soul. Her name meant "consecrated to God," but the women of her town called her "the barren one." 

"The barren one." Sometimes she would hear it whispered as she passed by a cluster of ladies talking, their children clinging to their skirts. Other times it only took a look, that certain kind of look women give each other that cuts like a knife. Women can be incredibly cruel, using only their tongue or the look of a raised eyebrow as weapons. 

Still, she had not acted in kind. She did not gossip about other people's problems or embarrassments, nor harbor bitterness in her hurt toward them. Instead she continually lifted her hurt and her heart to the faithful God she served and loved. She did not understand why she could not conceive, but she trusted Him with what she did know. The Lord was just. Faithful. His love never failed. These were the realities she leaned on. There were times she leaned hard. Meanwhile the years continued until her child-bearing years ran out like grains of sand in an hourglass. Still, she continued to trust the Lord, heart full of trust even though her arms were empty. 

Then came the silent, wonder-filled announcement of her husband! As it sank in, she sat in her chair with hands clasped over her heart looking to Heaven with her heart too full to speak. She knew, though, that the Lord could understand her unspoken thanks and praise perfectly. She reached out, taking her husband's hand, her eyes shining like a new bride, she had said to him, "Yes, my beloved husband, we shall have a gift from God... a son. Our son." 

Not long after, there came the day she had met Zechariah at the door of their home with the news she had waited to tell him for years and years. 

"My husband, you are going to be a father." 

They laughed for joy as they danced around their home. The two aged ones were going to have a baby! Two senior citizens would have to build a nursery! Oh, the Lord had a wonderful sense of humor! 

For five months she had kept herself in seclusion. Rarely did she go into town. She worked quietly at home, taking extra care of her aged body, now the home of two living souls. She spent much time with the Lord, pouring out her heart of thankfulness to Him. The ache of barrenness…gone! O, praise the Lord, she was barren no more! She would wait until it was very obvious that she was with child before she would let the women of the village see her. Then God's miracle would be revealed to all. They would see that it was God Himself who had taken away her reproach. Her devotion to Him had been rewarded. The barren one was now described all over the hill country of Judea as "the blessed one." 

She was nearing her sixth month when her young cousin Mary from Nazareth arrived at her home. Elizabeth had not expected her visit, for it was nearly four days journey from Nazareth to Hebron where they lived, a distance of almost 100 miles. But, from the moment she saw Mary, she knew that something even more wonderful than her miracle had happened. At the sound of Mary's voice, her baby leaped in her womb as if in exaltation. The little one inside her literally jumped for joy! She was so overwhelmed by the wonder of the moment, she didn't even notice the ache under her ribs. 

Elizabeth felt her heart filled with a joy that she knew could only come from the Spirit of the Living God. Suddenly, she knew! She knew what only Mary had known before. Mary was going to be the mother of the Messiah! God's Savior would be born to her! 

"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord shall come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy! Blessed is she who has believed what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" 

The look on Mary's face showed great relief. "Oh, Elizabeth! I knew God would reassure me through you! He told me through an angel that you were going to have a baby. When I heard of your miracle, I found it easier to believe Him for the miracle He is doing in me as well. Somehow, I knew you would understand." Relieved, she fell into Elizabeth's arms and Elizabeth held her close to her heart. 

She felt the Lord holding them both very close to His heart as well. 

The two spent nearly three months together, precious time for the two mothers-to-be. They talked of the things expectant mothers talk about - clothes, feeding babies, the reactions of their men to their condition, morning sickness, the miracle of life growing in their wombs. They did not talk about names for their sons, however, for both 

had already been named... by God. It was from the solid, faithful, loving heart of Elizabeth that Mary gained the encouragement and wisdom that she would need to handle the months ahead. She too would be whispered about among the women. She too would face days of wondering just what all these divinely ordained events would mean. With gentleness and humility, Elizabeth ministered to her young cousin, who was barely a teenager. She knew that her child would never be as important as Mary's, yet she poured her love into the young woman's life. 

In Elizabeth's ninth month, and Mary's third, Mary left to return to her Joseph and to Nazareth. The two women clung to each other in a long embrace before Mary turned to leave. 

"Thank you, thank you." Mary whispered. 

"I'll be praying for you... I love you." Elizabeth softly said in return. 

They would not see each other again until both their sons were born. 

Finally, for Zechariah and Elizabeth, the great day came! Zechariah paced nervously. "Oh, he's never looked so handsome!" she thought between contractions. Then, as the pain increased and became more frequent, her attention completely focused on the birth. She grimaced, sweat running down her face, taking deep breaths, 

one more push... 

the sound of a baby crying... 

her baby! 

John had come at last! Zechariah leaned over her as Elizabeth lay exhausted and kissed her gently. Their tears of joy mingled together as their son took his first meal from his mother. 

Thank God for Elizabeths! They are the people quiet and often unnoticed. Yet, when God wants to do something important, they are often an integral part of His plan. People like Elizabeth, a woman of faith and courage, remind us God’s way of rewarding faithfulness doesn’t always fit into our sense of timing. His way of vindicating our reputation is always better than ours. God knows how to take our barrenness and turn it into miraculous blessedness when we humbly trust Him. Not positioned by God to be in the limelight, Elizabeth, nonetheless, gave her wholehearted encouragement to Mary so God’s spotlight could shine brightly on the mother of God. Because “the Consecrated One” saw her child as a gift from God, she was willing to put John in God’s hands to cooperate with His purposes. She was willing for her son’s reputation to decrease so the honor of Mary’s Son could increase. 

Elizabeth’s son would do the same.

Excerpt from the book Christmas Hearts written by Fit & Flourish president and co-founder, Dr. Tim Roehl