Waiting On Your Promise? Here are 5 Things Mary Did!

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Hey friends, welcome to one of our Her God Story holiday episodes.

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I'm your host, Jodie Chiricosta, ministry leader at Somebody Cares America International, author

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and traveler on this journey of faith.

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This episode will be a slight departure from our normal format.

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Instead of interviewing a woman of faith in our day, I thought I'd share some of what

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the Lord has been showing me about waiting on God's promises to be fulfilled.

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Quite a few of the Christian leaders I know believe there will be an increase in the suddenlies

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of God in the coming year.

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Suddenlies are those promises we've been waiting for, hoping for, believing for, praying

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for, and that we finally see happen.

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Sometimes the wait is short, but other times the wait seems to go on forever.

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There are a lot of these suddenlies in the Bible when the long-awaited promise finally

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arrives.

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Here are just a few.

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After searching through the entire animal kingdom for a suitable mate, Adam was put

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to sleep and suddenly there was Eve.

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Joseph waited 13 or more years for his dream to come true and suddenly he was promoted

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out of prison to be the second in command of Egypt.

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The Israelites clung to the hope of a land all their own, which was promised to Abraham

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hundreds of years before.

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Then suddenly they were freed from slavery in Egypt.

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David was anointed king as a teen, then had to run for his life for many years before

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he suddenly became king when Saul was killed.

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In Acts, the disciples were assembled in the upper room praying and waiting for the

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promised Holy Spirit.

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When suddenly there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm in

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that filled the house where they were sitting.

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Then what looked like flames and tongues of fire appeared and settled on each one, and

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everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit.

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Philip was told to go into all the world and preach the gospel.

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Then suddenly he was transported by the Spirit from one place to another.

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When Paul and Silas, God's ambassadors to the Gentiles, they were thrown into prison,

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but God had promised they would go to many more places to preach.

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So as they worshiped at jail, suddenly an earthquake shook the prison, opening all the

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doors and the chains of every prisoner fell off.

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The suddenly fulfillment of God's promises come in his own time, in his own way, but

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fulfill his purposes perfectly.

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Each of these suddenly moments were times when God's promise or word was fulfilled,

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when spiritual realities broke through into the natural realm.

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Now many of us have been praying for the fulfillment of a promise for quite some time.

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That prayer may be for the salvation of a family member, an open door for ministry,

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greater influence in some area of our lives, widespread revival, or some other promise

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from the Lord.

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I know I certainly have.

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As I've pondered this, as well as the miracle of the incarnation, the Lord prompted me to

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look at the life of Mary.

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And as I did, I began to see some principles from her life that I hope will equip and encourage

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you in your walk with the Lord.

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God began showing me how to actively, expectantly wait for our promise through the story of

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Mary.

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To give some context, the Jewish people had been waiting hundreds of years for the promised

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Messiah, the Anointed One, that would restore God's people to their rightful place.

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Over time, a burdensome system of traditions and rules had been established to try to create

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the right environment for Messiah, or earn God's favor.

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They expected him to come as a conquering hero to vanquish their physical enemies.

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So when Jesus came and defeated our real enemy, Satan, they did not recognize him.

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They were so busy appeasing the Roman rulers that they forgot how to recognize God's

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presence.

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There were some, though, who had cultivated spiritual understanding, like Zechariah and

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Elizabeth, the chosen parents of John the Baptist, and Simeon and Anna, who each served

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the Lord with pure hearts in the temple for decades.

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They longed for Messiah's appearance in any form.

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Elizabeth recognized Jesus as the Messiah immediately when Mary walked in the door while

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he was still in her womb, while Simeon and Anna quickly recognized the eight-day-old

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baby Jesus as the promised one they had waited for.

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Now back to Mary.

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She was still a teenager when the angel Gabriel first appeared to her with the startling news

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that she would give birth to the Messiah.

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We can tell by Gabriel's greeting to Mary that she had a pure heart that yearned for

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Messiah's coming in any form.

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Gabriel called her highly favored, telling her in Luke 1-28, the Lord is with you.

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That was an astonishing statement for someone to hear, let alone an unmarried woman in that

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day.

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When Gabriel told her what God was about to do, she had a choice.

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She could embrace God's plan and wait for its fulfillment or not.

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Mary did the first.

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She embraced God's plan even though she didn't understand it all.

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But Mary's waiting wasn't passive.

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Her waiting was filled with faith and action.

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I'll point out five things she did in the waiting that we can apply to our lives as

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well.

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First, believe.

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The first thing she did, she believed God's promise.

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As unlikely as Gabriel's statement was, she believed.

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She also wanted some details.

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In Luke 1-34, she asked, how can this be?

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I'm a virgin.

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But that didn't constitute unbelief.

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She wanted to understand more fully her part.

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She could have scoffed at the idea in disbelief like the religious leaders did when they first

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encountered Jesus, or reject His coming out of fear like King Herod did, but instead she

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believed, which is the first step in waiting for a promise from God.

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The next thing she did was submit.

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Mary submitted herself to God's plan.

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She could have been stoned to death for getting pregnant out of wedlock in that day and age.

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At the very least, she would be ostracized, outcast, and looked down upon.

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And what about her fiancé?

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He would likely reject her too.

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But Mary had amazing faith in God and an earnest desire to see His will done.

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So she responded in Luke 1-28 by saying, I am the Lord's servant.

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May everything you've said about me come true.

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Wow.

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She was willing to abandon her status, her standing, her future, all into God's hands

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with no expectations and no guarantees.

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Third, be with like-minded people.

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A few days after her angelic encounter, Mary went off to the home of her relatives, Zechariah

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and Elizabeth.

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She stayed there for three months.

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Previously, I mentioned that they too were waiting for the Messiah.

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They had believed and submitted to God's plan as well and were waiting for the birth of

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their son, John the Baptist, who was coming to prepare people's hearts for their Messiah.

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When Mary arrived, Elizabeth immediately recognized that Mary was also part of God's plan, and

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she encouraged Mary's faith by saying in Luke 1-45, you are blessed because you believed

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that the Lord would do what He said.

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In those early days, there was not yet any proof that Mary was pregnant.

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So Elizabeth's proclamation and support helped foster peace in her waiting.

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The fourth thing she did is praise.

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Mary's belief welled up inside her and spilled out as praise.

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And praise would have inevitably strengthened her faith.

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Luke 1-46-55 records a song of praise that she created.

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In the New Living Translation, it reads, Oh, how my soul praises the Lord, how my spirit

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rejoices in God my Savior!

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For He took notice of His lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call

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me blessed.

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For the Mighty One is holy, and He has done great things for me.

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He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear Him.

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His mighty arm has done tremendous things.

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He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.

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He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble.

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He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.

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He has helped His servant Israel and remembered to be merciful.

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For He made His promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.

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While Mary did thank and praise the Lord for what He had done for her, she went far beyond

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that.

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Praising His character and the things He had done for her people, she looked at the big

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picture and praised God in faith for it all.

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Psalm 22-3 tells us that God is enthroned on the praises of His people.

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So as she praised, God's throne, His rule and reign were reaffirmed in and over her

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life.

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His presence was near her in the waiting.

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The fifth thing Mary endured, I've never been pregnant, but I have talked with and

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watched many of my family and friends go through pregnancy.

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It is not for the faint of heart.

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Mary went through it all.

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On top of that, her parents, I'm sure, were horrified.

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Her engagement was nearly broken off.

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After Gabriel assured Joseph that the pregnancy was truly by the Holy Spirit, they finally

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married.

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But about the time she was due, they had to make an arduous three to five day journey

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on foot or maybe donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

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Those nine months tried Mary mentally, emotionally and physically.

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But she endured.

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Romans 5-4 tells us that endurance develops strength of character.

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And character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

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You see, Mary was carrying the Savior of the world, so she needed to have endurance in

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the waiting.

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What promise are you waiting for?

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Do you have a word from the Lord about it?

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If not, ask Him for one.

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Then believe what He says.

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Submit all your expectations, your status, your future into His hands to do with what

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He sees fit in bringing the promise to pass.

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Get around other people of faith who will encourage you in the waiting.

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Praise God for all He's done for you and for who He is and what He's done for others

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too.

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If things get tough and the pressure's on, endure.

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In Isaiah 55-11, God says, So my word, which goes out from my mouth, will not return to

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me empty.

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It will do what I want it to do and will carry out my plan well.

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Let me pray for you.

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Heavenly Father, like Mary, our souls praise you.

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We rejoice in you who are our Savior.

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You created us.

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You formed us in our mother's womb.

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You took notice of us and called us your own.

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You who are the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, you're slow to anger and you're

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abounding in love.

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You are the same yesterday, today, and forever, and your goodness and your mercy, no, no end.

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You have rescued your people throughout history and you will do it again.

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You have provided for your people throughout all generations and you won't stop now.

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We thank you for the glorious work you're doing in the spiritual realm that we cannot

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yet see, but we believe you're doing glorious things.

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Father, I ask you to encourage all those listening, remind them of the word you've spoken to

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them, and let them see what you're doing burst forth into the natural realm, salvations,

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healings, deliverance, promotion, expansion, all for your glory.

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I ask all this in the precious name of Jesus.

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Amen.

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Thank you for tuning in.

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In the next episode, I'm going to share more about Mary's story, What Happens When

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the Promise Finally Comes.

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In our show notes at hergodstory.org, you'll find links to scriptures and other helpful

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information and don't forget to sign up for periodic emails and download a free six-week

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share it with a friend who might enjoy it too.

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And now, dear friends, I bless you as Elizabeth did Mary in Luke 1-45.

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May you be blessed because you believe that the Lord will do what He said.

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