Don’t you hate waiting? I don’t know anyone who likes to wait. Some of us seem to do it better than others, but inside we all have the same struggles. We try to imagine outcomes and want to figure out ways to end the misery of uncertainty with resolution. We fill our time and our minds with all sorts of distractions, but in the end we know that we are helpless to resolve what only God with time can tie up in a neat bow.
Mary did a lot of waiting in her lifetime. Think about it! We've become so comfortable with the stories in the Bible that we forget that the people in them were living the events like we do, unclear of the end. First, she received the message from Gabriel that she would be the mother of God’s son and then had to wait to confirm everything. Luke tells us that Mary's next action after receiving the message was to go see Elizabeth, presumably to confirm that she was, indeed, pregnant, as the angel had told Mary(Luke 1:36,39). Elizabeth’s confirmed pregnancy would be proof that Mary hadn't just had a weird dream. Elizabeth’s pregnancy would confirm her own, but it took time to get there and she most likely didn’t have any symptoms of pregnancy at the outset. Perhaps that is why she remained with Elizabeth for three months. By the time she got there she may have begun to experience the fatigue and morning sickness that is part of the first trimester. Anyone who has been pregnant knows that once the symptoms begin, it can be pretty rough for a while. Walking was the primary method of transportation and it's about 70 miles from Nazareth to Jerusalem. Mary most likely would not have been up to the return trip immediately! The wait that was part of her journey had brought confirmation to what she had been told. Circumstances confirmed the angel’s words and brought an end to the first wait. But then she had to wait again. She had to wait to tell Joseph.
That waiting must have been excruciating. It would be in Joseph’s power to crush her. He could reject her and make her life miserable, proclaim her as an adulterer, humiliate her before the whole village. How well did she know him? Did she know the righteousness of his character that would desire to treat her with kindness? Matthew says that when Joseph knew Mary was pregnant his plan was to divorce her quietly (Matthew 1:19). He didn’t want to publicly humiliate her. But did Mary expect that?
You and I have been in those waiting times. Sometimes the waiting is worse than the actual event, right? Our minds play out all the possible outcomes. Even if we think things might go a certain way, we have no way of being absolutely certain. Take another look at the nativity story and consider that Mary (and Joseph) may have experienced exactly the same emotional upheaval, the misery of uncertainty Regardless of what Mary expected, she still had to wait and wonder what Joseph would actually do.
After Jesus was born there was a different kind of waiting. Now she lived her everyday life and waited for all that had been spoken about this child to come to pass. When it did, was it what she had expected? She had to wait and watch him die, not knowing that this waiting would bring him back in three days. After he died there was waiting to see what life would be like without him, but then…he arose! Where was she when she heard that news? How long did she have to wait to see it with her own eyes? And then…what would happen next?
We don't know quite when it happened, but Mary became a committed believer. We know she obeyed the instruction given to all the disciples and was present among those who were in the Upper Room waiting again, this time for the promised Holy Spirit. At the end of Mary's waiting life she experienced what her first response, "May your word to me be fulfilled" (Luke 1:38 NLT), cleared the path for, an eternity of fulfilled promises.
What are you waiting for right now? I can't tell you how long you will wait or what challenges will be part of the process, but I can tell you that it will be worth it. Really! I think that Mary would agree.
Key thought: Waiting is worth it.
A Scripture to Consider:
For no matter how many promises God has made, the are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 1:20
A YES challenge: Where are you experiencing the misery of uncertainty? How can you give God your YES while you wait for Him?
Prayer:
Lord, I don't know how all of this is going to turn out. I really hate this not knowing! Help me to remember that You will fulfill your promises to me and to all who call on Your name. Help me to believe that it really will be worth it. Amen.