For the next 3 weeks before Christmas, I’m going to release 3 posts Celebrating The Christmas Women. I really wanted to title this series: The Teenager, A Middle-Aged Woman, and The Senior Citizen I Want to Be Like, but I thought it was a little long 🙂
Parts of these posts I shared in a message at Christmas events. There’s just so much to the lives of these women that I can’t get away from their stories and how it relates to the birth of Christ. I want to share these snippets of their stories with you so you can see the hope of Christmas, our hope in Christ as we learn from these women and begin to model the character they lived.
Each of these women were:
CARRIERS – OF THE PROMISE & PRESENCE OF GOD
All three of these women carried inside of them the promise of their savior, the Messiah. The Christmas women all spent time in the presence of God so, when God’s promises were present in their lives they immediately recognized them. Each woman’s life in the Christmas story affected people around them as they pointed the world to Christ.
These three believed in the promises of God and trusted in God’s timing. It’s my greatest desire to be like the Christmas Women, to carry inside of me the promise and the presence of God. I want my life to affect others so they look to Christ, to live out a strong faith, believing in His promises with a confident trust in His timing to fulfill them.
It’s my prayer, that by the end of this series you want to be like these women too.
So let’s begin our Christmas Festivities,
Celebrating the Women of The Christmas Story!
The first woman in the Christmas story…Jesus’ Story…is actually:
THE MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN
“When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home. Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months. “How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.”
Luke 1:23-25 NLT
Luke starts his gospel account starting with the record of a couple named Zechariah and Elizabeth and he tells us this couple was old, that was his way of saying Elizabeth was passed the age of child-bearing. One day while working in the temple, an angel tells Z that Elizabeth his wife is going to have a child, and not just any child.
Their child would be the one prophesied about in Malachi 4:6. He wast to be the forerunner for the Messiah.
“And he will go on before the Lord…to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (NIV)
It’s pretty clear from Z’s reaction that he had long since given up on the dream to have a child before the angel came to meet him at work. Z didn’t believe and as a sign from God that God could do what He said, Z was unable to speak for 9 months, until the birth of his son.
ELIZABETH
On the other hand, Elizabeth immediately believed and because of her faith, Elizabeth carried John the Baptist; the one who would prepare the way for the Christ, in her womb. Elizabeth protected the promise of God inside of her by staying secluded for 5 months, she took extra precautions to make sure the promise of God inside of her was able to grow and mature. Elizabeth didn’t let anyone talk her out of her promise from God. She didn’t allow anything to stop it from being birthed.
Be like Elizabeth…
Protect the promise of God in your life. Luke 1:24
This Christmas, think about the promises God has given you as a believer in His Word and the one’s He’s given to you personally. Protect those promises. Give them room to grow in your heart, your mind, and in your life so you can see them birthed like the baby, John The Baptist.
ELIZABETH CARRIED THE PROMISE & THE PRESENCE OF GOD…I WANT TO DO THE SAME #ChristmasWomen
Prayer
Father…I thank You for all the promises in Your Word and for speaking directly to me. Help me to put a shield around your promises so they will have room grow so I’m able to carry them to full-term; watching Your promises be fulfilled in Your timing. In Jesus Name…Amen
Soul H2O Radio & Podcast Christmas Series
During the Christmas season, were running The Brave Christmas & Christian Women Series. Episode 48 is Part1 of The Brave Middle-Aged Christmas Woman & Brave Cheryl. In This Series, were Celebrating The Women of The Christmas Story and a few of their contemporary counterparts.
Now, I know we’re supposed to focus on Jesus and we will be but I think it’s good to take some time and recognize the impact some of these brave women had in the Christmas narrative and in our world today. I know you’re going to be inspired by my friend, Cheryl Nembhard. She’s a TV & Podcast Host, Speaker, Author, & Social Justice Advocate.
You can find the full story of Zechariah and Elizabeth in these portions of scripture:
Luke 1:5-25 John The Baptist Birth Foretold
Luke 1:39-56 Mary Visits Elizabeth
Luke 1:57-66 Elizabeth gives birth to the Promise of God
Did you like the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion? Then you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women and I hope you’ll Subscribe to receive weekly Soul H2O devotions.
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This devotion was originally posted on December 5, 2016.
#Dare2Share
Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!
I’d never thought much of those 5 months, before, Sherry! Thanks for teasing this out!
Bethany,
That post was truly just a teaser. There is so much about those 5 months…so much about Elizabeth. These girls are amazing!
Love ya ? Sherry
Love this reminder, Sherry, to hold on and protect God’s promises. I’d never seen Elizabeth’s story that way. Thank you for sharing your heart and your insights. xoxo
Crystal, love your comments 🙂 My goal is to help people see the people in the Bible as they were and the miraculous that God would use regular people…like us! Thanks for sharing your encouragement so freely.
~Sherry
xoxo
Sherry,
I think I most relate to the Elizabeth, the middle-ager in your series! I just love the verse in Luke that describes her situation as nothing being impossible with God – -it’s one of my favorites! I really love it when a writer gets under the skin (so to speak!) of a woman in the Bible so we can see them as real women, like us, and not the long-ago saint that we think they might have been. I look forward to the next posts in this series!
Valerie,
I’m glad I helped you see Elizabeth as a real woman…just like yourself. Good to know that no matter our age or stage of life, nothing is impossible with God!
Have a blessed day!
~Sherry
xoxo
Protecting the promise. I’ve never thought of it. Never pondered it. Thank you for this lesson. God has given us all promises and they do need to be protected until he brings them to pass. Bless you for sharing.
Calvonia,
Honored to have you stop by. I’m so glad that light bulbs went off for you today! Hold on to those promises girl…nothing is impossible with our God 🙂 Have a blessed day!
~Sherry
xoxo
I just love this idea, Sherry! What a unique lens
to view Christmas through; I simply adore Elizabeth’s story. It
teaches us that nothing is impossible with God, and His greatest gifts
are worth waiting for. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
Sarah, Too often we read the Bible and look at the people in it through ‘rose colored glasses’. My goal is to help people see with 20/20 vision who they really were and how we’re just like them! Regular people used for HIS glory!
~Sherry
xoxo
“Elizabeth didn’t let anyone talk her out of her promise from God. She didn’t allow anything to stop it from being birthed.” Yes! A similar message has been stirring in my heart, except I was seeing it through Mary. I love how you brought it out through Elizabeth. Can’t wait for the rest of the series!
Kelly,
Shocking??? We had the same train of thought? Who would ever imagine that 🙂 Girl, we are so in sync. Every girl in this series held that same kind of faith in God like Mary did as Elizabeth talked about in Luke 1:45. We so need to meet up someday soon!
~Sherry
xoxo
This is lovely– I had never thought of these “women of Christmas” before! Can’t wait to read more! Funny that our pastor was just preaching on Z’s reaction vs. Mary’s a few weeks ago- Z said, “How can I be ‘SURE’ this will happen?” whereas Mary said, “How WILL this happen…?” Possibly the difference in reactions stems from really carrying and believing God’s promise as gospel inside of us… Merriest of Christmases to you Sherry!
Heather,
I love how God will hone in on a message for a season and it seems like everywhere you go you’re hearing it through different voices. You hear it at church in a sermon, on the radio in a song or message, read it in a book or on a blog. God knows how to speak to us. Glad you’ll be joining me for the rest of my insights into the #ChristmasWomen 🙂 Have a blessed day!
~Sherry
xoxo
How interesting that you have Elizabeth as the “middle-aged” woman and not the senior citizen. I’m looking forward to finding out who the senior citizen is.
Oh just you wait and see Laura 🙂 You’ll have to wait two weeks as Monday is the Teenager.
A LITTLE BACKGROUND ABOUT ELIZABETH AS THE MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN, NOT THE SR. CITIZEN…EVEN THOUGH LUKE CALLED HER VERY OLD 🙁
We know Elizabeth was past child-bearing age (post-menopausal) but her hubby was still working so he had to be under 50. During that time Priests worked from 25-50 years old (Numbers 8:24-25). She may have been older than Z but not much I would assume? Most men back then married younger women to bear children. So, I think it’s safe to say she was middle-aged.
Have a blessed day!
~Sherry
xoxo
Beautiful amiga! Your writing ✍️ always inspires me!
Blessings!
So glad to hear it Claudia <3
Much love,
~Sherry
xoxo