Promises Take Time
God’s Biggest
Promises Take Time
J. Lee Grady
Most Christmas
movies or pageants focus on the principal characters of the nativity story—the
innocent Mary, the bewildered Joseph, the awestruck shepherds and a sleeping
baby Jesus.
Then we throw in the non-biblical
extras, like the cartoon donkey named Bo in the new movie The Star,
which tells the story of Jesus' birth from the animals' point of view.
But I've yet to see a play or a
film of the Christmas story that focuses on Simeon and Anna, the two Jewish
intercessors who prophesied over Jesus a few days after His birth. That's the
movie I want to see.
This Christmas I'm thinking more
about Simeon and Anna—not because I've reached their age bracket but because
Christmas is not really a story about mangers, donkeys and angels.
Ultimately it is a story about
how God fulfills His promises—even when those promised answers take a long
time.
While most of Israel was clueless
about God's plan of salvation and angry about the Roman occupation of
Jerusalem, Simeon knew Jesus was coming—and the Holy Spirit told him he
wouldn't die until he saw the Messiah.
When Mary and
Joseph brought the infant Jesus to the temple to be dedicated, Simeon took the
boy in his arms and declared that He was the "light for revelation to the
Gentiles" (Luke 2:32).
Then Anna walked into the scene.
An 84-year-old widow, she had been praying and fasting continually in the
temple, asking God to send the Savior.
She had sought God for years for
the promised Savior.
I am sure she was weary of
waiting. Yet, like Simeon, she immediately recognized Jesus as the answer to
her prayers and began telling everyone that their long wait was over.
Luke 2:38 says
that when Anna saw the baby, "she gave thanks to the Lord and spoke
of Him to all those who looked for the redemption of Israel."
It was a scene of jubilation.
I imagine both Simeon and Anna
held their hands in the air and perhaps even shouted as they welcomed the
fulfillment of ancient prophecies.
But what we don't see in this
happy scene are the decades of painful groaning that these old saints endured.
The joyful moment of Jesus' birth
did not come without a price.
God's promises, like the birth of
children, require a gestation period—an agonizing season of waiting.
Most people in the Bible who
claimed big promises did not get instant, microwave answers.
Like the childless Hannah, the
heirless Abraham or the imprisoned apostle Paul, they travailed. And waited.
And travailed some more.
In the animal kingdom, big
creatures often have the longest gestation periods.
A baby whale grows in his
mother's womb for 18 months, and a baby giraffe waits 15 months.
Some species of elephants are
pregnant for two years.
That tells me if I am carrying a
big promise, I should be prepared to wait.
I should understand this
uncomfortable process, since I watched my wife give birth to all four of our
children.
How quickly we forget that prayer
is often compared with childbirth in the Bible.
And in this tedious process, we
must press through the darkness of doubt and lay hold of God's sure promise,
especially when we feel like giving up.
Many of us right now are at the
most intense stage of the birth process—the transition phase, in which a
pregnant woman feels confused, irritable and restless.
We endure similar feelings of
desperation in our walk of faith.
We ask ourselves, Did God
really promise me that? Everything inside us wants to quit believing.
I am sure Simeon and Anna
considered quitting during their years of prayer.
The headlines in Jerusalem were
depressing. The economy was awful. The political situation was demoralizing.
Yet these two faithful prayer
warriors didn't go into retirement. They found the grace to press on.
Though their hands grew feeble,
their faith grew strong. They felt barren, but they shouted anyway.
Perhaps they
read the promise of Isaiah 62:1: "For the sake of Zion I will not keep
silent, and for the sake of Jerusalem I will not rest until her
righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that
burns."
They did not let the flame of
prayer go out. They persevered.
And finally, their groaning paid
off—and they had something to shout about.
They not only witnessed the
Christmas miracle; they also got to hold the baby Jesus in their arms.
This Christmas, I pray the faith
of Simeon and Anna will inspire you to hold tightly to all God has promised
you. The promise came from Him. He is working quietly behind the scenes.
Don't stop believing.
J. Lee Grady was
editor of Charisma for 11 years before he launched into
full-time ministry in 2010. Today he directs The Mordecai
Project, a Christian charitable organization that is taking the healing
of Jesus to women and girls who suffer abuse and cultural oppression. Author of
several books including 10 Lies the Church Tells Women, he has just
released his newest book, Set My Heart on Fire, from Charisma House. You can
follow him on Twitter at @LeeGrady or go to his website,themordecaiproject.org.
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