Luke 1:26-33 (NLT)
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you![d]”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel[e] forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
I have three children and the circumstances that surrounded their conception and birth were all completely different. In the mist of joy, there was pain. In the midst of expectation, there was confusion. Despite all of my feelings , I was pregnant, and if there were no complications, a baby was going to be born.
I asked myself, " What will my life be like when I have this child"? "What will its life be like"? "How will I take care of it?" "Will I and others love this baby the way a baby should be loved?" I asked myself so many questions, yet there was one question that I didn't think to ask until today "How will my baby affect the world"?
I understand that in some cultures parents plan pregnancies with this in mind but on average rarely do expecting parents consider this at all. Most of the time our thoughts towards our child are self centered and a bit selfish. I don't think we take on this attitude because of a character flaw, but rather from a natural instinct (it's in our nature). Perhaps it comes from the months of carrying the child in the womb, or from the burning labor pains, or the sleepless nights we spent feeding a baby, who's nightly cycle was that of a person who worked midnights. I don't know, but surely those things can help define what the child means to you.
You may be wondering, where is Lucretia going with this?
Lets take this from the natural to the spiritual and back.
You are pregnant with the purposes of God and you may be experiencing some of the same feelings that I did with my pregnancies, but today I want you to consider that you are not going through all of it for yourself alone. The ups and downs, the cravings, the morning sickness, the awkward emotions and the the sleepless nights are all a part of the process of birthing a world changer.
When we realize and accept that we are pregnant with the plan of God, the process takes on a new meaning. The process does not change but our determination to have a healthy birth does. Your eating habits change. Your not able to do the things you used to. You become more aware of what you are carrying.
Mary (the mother of Jesus) was carrying "The World Changer" of world changers, and look what she had to go through to see the birthing of this promise. Shame, confusion, criticism, uncertainties, misunderstanding, she had to flee from an assassination attempt on her child, birth Him in a horse stable and after He was born she had to watch Him die an early death (that's a whole other subject but still a part of God's plan).
I know those where all the negatives she endured but its usually the negatives that discourage us during the process. It's hard for us to see the positive. However, we are going to look at some of the positives of her process.
1. She was favored by God
2. She was being used of God
3. Her voice carried the Holy Spirit
4. She was protected from danger
5. She birthed the promise
Because she submitted herself to the Word/will of The Lord we are the result of it all. It was her birthing of God's redemption plan (Jesus) for mankind that we are who we are and where we are today.
The world needs the promise that is growing inside of you. They may not know it but it's about to be born. I know your uncomfortable but not for much longer. Focus on what God is allowing to be born through you and how it will impact this world for the Kingdom of God-AND GET READY TO PUSH!
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