Luke 1:11-21 (NKJV): "Then the angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel tot he Lord their God. He will also go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." And Zacharias said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years."
You know the story about Zacharias and his encounter with Gabriel. Because he didn't believe what was being told him; he doubted God, as reflected in his question, "How shall I know this?".... he was struck mute (and possibly deaf as well as they had to bring him something to write on when he was to name John 8 days after he was born). Zacharias, who knew the Word that they had at that time, doubted what the angel told him.
Compare Zacharias' response to Gabriel and the news God sent to him with that of Mary.....
Luke 1:25-34 (NKJV): "Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
Do you catch that? Zacharias doubted that God could do what the angel said ("How shall I know this?) versus Mary's complete surrender ("How can this be?} to what the angel Gabriel told her.
How do you question God? Do you question Him, doubting that He will answer you with the response you want? Or, do you question God, in complete surrender of what His will is for you, and ask 'how shall this be?"
Yes, we made it to church yesterday and it was a great message, and one that causes you to stop and think about the times we question God (yes, I do question Him at times!) and do I ask questions challenging God, doubting He will do what I ask? Or do I ask with 'whatever Your will is, Lord, I surrender to You.?' Sit back and think about that one. Which question do you think God will answer?
I wanted to visit Ms. Diane yesterday afternoon but I saw a car there I didn't recognize. I called her and she did say she had company, so I asked her to call me when they left. She forgot. (I waited until her daughter arrived and then I went over for a short visit).
While I was waiting on Ms. Diane to call me back, I wanted to get something accomplished, but didn't want to be in the middle of it should she call. So I decided to make the hot chocolate 'bombs' I mentioned yesterday. I bought the 5 ounce cups and I think I should have bought the smaller ones! I got the shell of chocolate to set. I put in the hot chocolate mix in the bottom. I added the candy cane, I added the marshmallows... and then put chocolate on top of that... and the shell melted... and yeah, it became a chocolate mess. It went from 8 chocolate shells down to 4.... and only one of those four is really a mess... the other three I managed to salvage somewhat and put them all in the refrigerator. I want to get smaller cups and see if I can do it better. I also need to watch the video again and I think I know where I went wrong. But it was fun making them.
But no cookies and no pickles were made yesterday. I'll start on some tonight, perhaps. I'd rather spend my evening baking rather than listening to the stupid TV. I really need to get it done this week so that I can send to my friend in Georgia our cookie exchange. I'm thinking Gingersnaps, Snickerdoodles, and Oatmeal Raisin. They are simple enough and I just don't do the roll out and decorate cookie thing and haven't in years. Maybe if I don't over extend myself next year I can do something like that.
We are now one day less than two weeks until Christmas. All my wrapping is done - unless I have some gifts come in I've ordered that I've forgotten about - which is very possible. I need to do better about keeping track of things I've ordered. (Right?) At this point, I'm not looking at sale ads - if it isn't already bought, I'm not buying it! It's the THOUGHT, not the GIFT, correct? I'm struggling with some as I don't know if they will like it... but I've got to let that thought go and believe they will.
I went to buy hams the other day... could not find any canned hams at Frys... and the ham I looked at was fatty... so ham may not be purchased this year. I know I told the kids last year I need to stop it... but it is something my mother did for my children.... and I just don't want to let that go... unless I have to. I know some depend on that ham to make their Christmas better. I also saw they had smoked sausage... but because I've already bought a few things to replace that, I opted not to buy any. I can't buy one and not for everyone, although I did consider it. Perhaps it has become 'expected' versus being a fun gift to get.... maybe I need to relook at a lot of things... like the chocolate covered cherries too... they are sooo sweet... do we really need them? I'm thinking of dropping those too, but I did get them this year. I don't even bother to wrap anymore. Yeah, it may be the last year for those as well. None of us need the extra sugar.... especially me. I'd rather it be a special gift/treat... than an expected one.
Guess I've shared enough this morning.... it's timecard Monday so need to sign on early and get those out of the way. It's my last week of doing about 13 of them... the leader of these people has been moved to another admin so as of the next timecard Monday, I won't have to approve their timecards. I've gotten them trained now so it doesn't take long. That leaves me only about 10 timecards to approve, which doesn't take long at all, once they approve their time. The good part of this - we get paid on Thursday! Whoo Hoo!
Hope that you have a good day - and take some time to think about the questions you throw up to God. What attitude do you have in your questions? I had a lot of questions for God when my older sister passed away... and I had really believed that He would heal her. I wanted a miracle... and I didn't get one. I struggled with that.... but I also believe that God is much wiser than I am... and I trust Him. But why didn't He answer my prayers for my sister? This side of heaven, I will never know that answer. One day when I am with Him, He will share His reasons. I am sure of it.
Blessings!
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