After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”

There were a few times in my life I felt unwanted or disgraced. These mostly came as a kid. The first was when I was made fun of for having a small hand in second grade. My mom fixed that by telling me, “God made you special that way, for a special purpose. And those people who make fun of you are going to get in trouble when they get to heaven.” Later, when she died of cancer, I felt shame and awkwardness around others who had a more normal life. I didn’t know how to relate, and they maybe didn’t understand my challenges.

Elizabeth was a barren woman in a society and culture where women were graded and ranked in part on the number of children (“offspring”) they could birth for their husbands. Why was this? It was an agricultural society, and they could live better with more children. Also, children would typically take care of their parents in their old age. Even today, without as much focus on childbearing as one of the main jobs of women, it is still hard for women who want to have children. So, this story of Elizabeth is so much the richer, when she becomes pregnant in old age — with the front-runner to the Messiah! No wonder she says that God has shown her favor and taken away her disgrace. Every day, she must have listened to other’s kids, heard moms dream, and wanted a child of her own. And now, finally, after all these years, she is rewarded! What joy! The story of Elizabeth is the story of a faithful woman who God rewarded beyond her wildest dreams!

So for all of my friends out there who are trying to have children, but are unsuccessful so far, or for the rest of us who deal with shame or disappointment in this life in other areas … take a deep breath. Breathe again and again — and know that the God who provides you with oxygen to breathe, he sees your struggle and he wants to draw close and comfort you. Though we don’t always understand the “whys”, we know the “whom” in the equation of life — The “whom” is God! All praise and all glory are due him! And we can trust, really trust him — 100% fully, all the time! Like the mailman, GOD ALWAYS DELIVERS his provision to us right on time. We must trust in his providence.

Lord, thank you for this encouragement today. Elizabeth waited and waited until all seemed lost, and then you provided for her. Help me to wait patiently today in my challenges … and just wait on you!