Luke 2:22-40
Be Still: Father, thank you for this new day that I get to spend with you. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit as I open up your Word. Amen
Read: Luke 2:22-40
'he was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him' (v25b)
'she never left the temple but worshipped night and day, fasting and praying' (v37b)
Encounter: When we read stories in the Bible, it’s easy to forget that the chapters that can take us minutes to read often document events spanning years or even decades. What gets lost is the sheer length of time that the people of God had to wait to see the promises of God come to fruition.
Anna and Simeon had to wait decades to see the promises of God fulfilled in their lives. If that was me, I’d probably have given up. Continuing to believe would have been too painful so I’d have chosen cynicism and bitterness. But we don’t meet two bitter cynics in Luke 2 – we meet two soft-hearted, Spirit-filled, titans of the faith who are overjoyed to finally set eyes on the Messiah.
So how do they keep their hearts soft in the waiting? We see the answer in the passage. The Holy Spirit is on Simeon, and Anna never leaves the temple but worships day and night, fasting and praying. This doesn’t mean that we need to grab our sleeping bags and permanently move into the church auditorium. But it does mean that we need to keep showing up, in our quiet times, to our community groups and on a Sunday, keep praying, keep fasting and keep asking the Holy Spirit to fill us. We might just find that it is in the waiting that the Lord shapes us into soft hearted, Spirit-filled titans of the faith who will be overjoyed when we too finally set eyes on the Messiah!
Apply: Where can you keep showing up this week? Maybe it’s your community group meeting on Thursday that you’re feeling too tired to attend? Maybe it’s getting up ten minutes earlier to spend time with Jesus and ask the Holy Spirit to fill you. Maybe it’s just grabbing coffee with a friend and asking if they can pray with you about a promise that you’re waiting on.
Devote: Thank you that you always keep your promises, even if I have to wait for decades. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit and teach me to wait well.