Love Comes Near: An Advent Bible Study, Dec. 10th Read Luke 1:39-45 Write Luke 1:45 Luke 1:45 - "And blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord." ----- "Mary and Elizabeth are in vastly different seasons of life. Mary, young and virginal, Elizabeth, old and barren. Yet, both are chosen as key players in God's plan of salvation for the world. Not because of anything they had done to earn or deserve it, but simply because they were faithful and they chose to believe God's promise." "Why did Mary go with 'haste' to visit Elizabeth?" I don't know. "It would be easy to assume Mary's 'greeting' to Elizabeth was a quick, bursting through the door with a hug and a 'Hello!', type of event. But a traditional greeting during this time would have likely included a lengthy exchange of details and updates from their lives. This is where Mary shares the events of the angel visiting her, and Elizabeth responds, 'No way! Me too!' Or so I imagine." ----- "What words and emotions do you suppose were exchanged during this greeting?" I guess "hello" "how are you?" joy, etc. "What do we learn about the faith of Mary and Elizabeth?" They seem to have a pretty strong faith. At least Elizabeth said there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord. ----- "Love Comes Near "There are many stories in the Bible, when men or women of faith were asked to do bold, scary, things in His name. And when they asked for God to show them a sign that it was really Him leading them, he often did it. (Read Judges 6:36-40 for one example) "God knows that sometimes we need assurance. That our emotions can get the best of us and quickly cloud the truth. When God says, 'Go', we should simply go! He is worthy of our going at his word. But, in his grace towards us, he knows sometimes we need a little more. "Mary and Elizabeth were living in a time when there hadn't been much prophe- sying. They hadn't seen any miracles. Their faith was built on the promises of truths passed down to them from generations before. "Sometimes, when the calling is big, we need big affirmation and encouragement to go along with it. And when we ask, God is gracious to provide it." ----- "Recall some ways God has affirmed your calling." The only calling I can think of that God is calling me is to be a help-mate of Jamie and to love her and help her and affirm her to the best of my ability. I probably don't do a very good job of it: I should work a lot harder to try and keep the house cleaner, for example. But I love her dearly and would do nearly anything for her that she would ask, as I am able. How has God af- firmed this? It's the feeling of love I have for Jamie which gives me some feeling of life as being worth living. I may not do a very good job of doing for Jamie everything I should, but I have a sense of *home*, a sense of *right*, a sense that by being there for Jamie, I am doing what God wants. Maybe there is more that God is calling me to along with being Jamie's help- mate. Together perhaps, Jamie and I can figure that out. Maybe I am sup- posed to do something for the Empowerment Center along with Jamie, and we will find more of our calling there. I just know that right now Jamie is not in a good head-space and is isolating, and I pray for her better, to help her get out and out of bad thought patterns that she indicated to me last night that she was having. ----- "How has God used you to affirm and encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ?" I don't know, I don't know that many people other than Jamie and Jamie's immediate family. Perhaps I have some growing to do to affirm and en- courage fellow Christians, especially my dearest Jamie, to help her so she can grow to depend on you, Jesus, and take comfort and challenge in knowing you better as Jamie and I grow together. I feel a little bit like a miserable failure in affirming and encouraging, but it's something I've missed somehow learning how to do it and that I need to do it. Jamie needs love and support right now, and I pray to you, God, to help me give her the support she needs. Maybe I have been bad by not going and visiting her in her room where she nests. Maybe I should work harder in encouraging her to get out of the house some times (and getting me out too!). Please Lord help me to know what to do to best encourage her and help her be happy and feel fulfilled, and not shakey or thinking of self-harm. Help me to be the best friend to her I can be. In Jesus' name, Amen.