A child’s perfect timing

“IN THE SIXTH MONTH OF ELIZABETH’S PREGNANCY,

GOD SENT THE ANGEL GABRIEL TO NAZARETH, A TOWN IN GALILEE,

TO A VIRGIN PLEDGED TO BE MARRIED TO A MAN NAMED JOSEPH, A DESCENDENT OF DAVID.

THE VIRGIN’S NAME WAS MARY.

THE ANGEL WENT TO HER AND SAID, “GREETINGS, YOU WHO ARE HIGHLY FAVORED!

THE LORD IS WITH YOU.”

LUKE 1:26-28

As we’ve just wrapped up the Christmas season, I’ve been reflecting a lot on the timing of the birth of Jesus. I’ve been thinking about how not just one couple, but an entire nation was waiting for the birth of Jesus for hundreds of years. Reading through the perfectly orchestrated events that took place leading up to the birth of our Savior brought me back to a Heavenly perspective that God gave me a few months ago on the timing of my own children.

Ever since I’ve been saved I have been so excited to be a mother because I truly cannot wait to tell my kids all about the Good News of Jesus. I can’t wait to raise them knowing and loving the truth. I can’t wait to speak biblical truths over them and watch them walk in the purpose that God has ordained for their lives. My desire to be a mother has grown tremendously as I’ve married Travis and seen him with our nieces and nephews. Oh what an incredible father he is going to make!

Before we got married, Travis and I discussed when we want babies and although my heart’s desire was to have a baby right away, we agreed that since we had only known each other for four months, we would spend the first year of our marriage building a solid foundation and growing closer to one another. I have personal convictions against birth control, so we decided that our only form of birth control would be prayer; we let God know our desire for one year together without pregnancy and left it in His hands. As soon as we prayed that prayer, Travis reminded me that each month that God answers our prayer we cannot be discouraged or dwell on any “what ifs”.

Nine months have now passed, and each month God has answered our prayer of giving us our first year of marriage without pregnancy. If I’m being honest, I think seven of those nine months I’ve allowed myself to get my hopes up. In our first nine months of marriage, we’ve had 13 close friends tell us they’re pregnant and by God’s grace I’ve been absolutely thrilled for every single one of them. I thank God for protecting my heart from jealously or bitterness and giving me the ability to genuinely celebrate the gift my friends have been given. But there was one month in the beginning where I was feeling particularly discouraged (even though we are walking in an answered prayer) and that’s when the Lord opened my eyes to a very important detail in the story of Elizabeth and Zechariah.

I had read Luke multiple times before, but that particular morning God used Luke 1 to remind me of the importance of His timing. I knew many women who looked to Sarah and Elizabeth’s stories in the scriptures for hope in waiting for children, so that’s what I was doing that day. 

“IN THE TIME OF HEROD KING OF JUDEA 

THERE WAS A PRIEST NAMED ZECHARIAH, 

WHO BELONGED TO THE PRIESTLY DIVISION OF ABIJAH;

 HIS WIFE ELIZABETH WAS ALSO A DESCENDENT OF AARON.

BOTH OF THEM WERE RIGHTEOUS IN THE SIGHT OF GOD,

OBSERVING ALL THE LORD’S COMMANDS AND DECREES BLAMELESSLY.

BUT THEY WERE CHILDLESS BECAUSE ELIZABETH WAS NOT ABLE TO CONCEIVE,

AND THEY WERE BOTH VERY OLD.”

LUKE 1:5-7

In this translation of Luke 1 Elizabeth and Zechariah are described as righteous and blameless people who were “old and childless”; they wanted a child but were never given one. One day, the Angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah in the temple and told him that his prayers had been answered; he and Elizabeth were to bear a son, a forerunner to the Messiah. Zechariah doubted the angel and told him that he and Elizabeth were old, but when he returned home, Elizabeth became pregnant just like the angel had said. Her son (John the Baptist) was going to be filled with the Holy Spirit from birth and his life would be dedicated to serving the Lord. Six months later, Elizabeth’s cousin Mary finds out she is pregnant with Jesus, the Savior of the world! Elizabeth’s long awaited son, John the Baptist goes on to live his life fulfilling his life’s purpose to prepare the way for his cousin, the Messiah.

While Elizabeth and Zechariah were waiting all those years for a child, it sounds to me like they had given up hope in their old age. But God’s timing for John to come into this world was absolutely perfect. It wasn’t about Elizabeth or Zechariah. It wasn’t about their faithfulness, it wasn’t about their readiness; it was about God’s purpose for the son that they would bear. John’s God-given purpose was to be filled with the Holy Spirit from birth and to prepare the way for Jesus. There was no more perfect time for him to be born than six months before the Messiah himself. Each detail was perfectly orchestrated by God.

After repeatedly seeing the details of God’s perfect timing in my life, I have been able to rest in God’s timing in my future children’s lives, too. The Lord has helped me surrender my will and understand that the timing of my children is not about me or what I want, it’s about the purpose they will have in this world. I’ve learned to pray more about the details of my future children’s hearts and purposes and less about the timing of when they’ll come into this world because God already has each and every day ordained for them.

“YOUR EYES SAW MY UNFORMED BODY; 

ALL THE DAYS ORDAINED FOR ME

  WERE WRITTEN IN YOUR BOOK 

BEFORE ONE OF THEM CAME TO BE” 

PSALMS 139:16

I don’t know God’s plans, but I know they’re perfect, and I know that He is in and cares about every single detail not only in my life, but in the lives of my children- from their future neighborhood friends to their spouses. I like to think about the possibility that one day my child might share the gospel with a child six months younger than them, and that child will come to know and love the Lord through that. Or how maybe a child six months older than mine will pave the way for mine. Maybe my daughter’s future husband who she’ll meet in college hasn’t been born yet.

Each month that passes I still have to surrender my will for God’s will because my desires to have a baby haven’t changed, but I can keep a heavenly perspective and find true rest in knowing that the Lord has every detail worked out. 

Prayer:

Lord, I pray for rest in God’s timing for every man and woman who desire to bring a child into this world. I pray that we see the beauty of God’s timing in our lives and the lives of our unborn children. Thank you for giving each and every child a specific purpose in this life. Thank you for your timing in bringing children into this world. As we can see in the story of Elizabeth and Zechariah, and Mary, you are not confined by the laws of science and you give your children exceedingly abundantly more than we could ever imagine. Please help us continue to surrender to your timing and your purposes. I pray this all in Jesus name, Amen.