She Who Believed
Do you believe God will do as He promised?
Belief is a funny thing. It can mean to accept as a fact or a truth.
We sometimes use “I believe” as a statement of confidence. C.S. Lewis once said, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” C.S. Lewis’ belief was a statement of truth. A statement of things he could see such as the risen sun but also things he could not yet see with physical eyes like God and His plan.
But, sometimes, it can be defined as a tentative opinion, an “I suppose…” We can use “I believe” as a feel-good motivational trick for self-affirmation. Augustine said it best, “If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.” We can trick ourselves into thinking we believe in higher things but instead, we are only following where our eyes take us and where our own reasoning makes sense.
Where does your belief fall? Do you believe God will do as He promised? Or do you believe only as long as it makes sense?
Mary believed. She heard and obeyed. The angel finished his proclamation to her and left. After that, Mary “hurried” to visit her cousin, another woman miraculously blessed by God to have a son.
Elizabeth believed. She heard Mary’s greeting and humbled herself. “How has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?” Filled with the Holy Spirit, she spoke of blessings.
Elizabeth’s son, John—still in the womb—heard the mother of our Lord and responded. Elizabeth said, “for behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy.”
So do you believe God will do as He promised? When you hear, how will you respond? Will it be a tentative “I think so”? Or a bold statement of truth, “I believe”!
Amanda Grein, Tallowood Teacher, Young Professionals Connect Group
