Trust and Faith in God

And Gabriel came to Mary and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. Luke 1:28, 30-35

An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife. Matthew 1:20b-21, 24

How frightening these incidents must have been for both Mary and Joseph! Mary was a teenager and the angel did not only tell her that she was going to have a baby, even though she was a virgin, but the baby was the Messiah that her people had been awaiting for generations. Joseph on the other hand was older but was asked to take on a great responsibility. Not only was he to take Mary as his wife but he was also to become the earthly father and protector of the Messiah. I am sure both of them wondered how they could take on the tasks that were asked of them. But notice, neither of them said no. Trust. The reason Mary and Joseph could say yes was because they trusted God. They knew absolutely if God was asking these things of them that He would not let them down. I’m sure that both of them were in awe that they were chosen. However, they were chosen for their faith and their trust in God. One other thing, God did not have them face these tasks alone, He gave them each other to lean on. Hasn’t God done the same for us? God has called each of us to a purpose. Sometimes, what He wants us to do is scary but He does not ask that we do these things alone. He has given us the church, other believers, to lean on. He allows us to be built up by our faith and our trust in Him. God does not let us down. 

Prayer: Wonderful God, in this season of advent help us to remember that as long as we trust and have faith in You, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. We know this is the season for us to remember others less fortunate than ourselves but also help us to remember people who are alone, people who are depressed and people who are in need of Christian love, Your love. Time is a gift that we can give. Help us give generously. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

Chelli Olsen (reprinted from the 2012 devotional booklet)