"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!"
Luke 1:45
Advent is, and has always been, a season of belief and blessing. The arrival of the Greatest Gift set many miraculous and momentous events in motion, and the end result was that each individual life integrally involved was touched by the Divine. Through numerous angelic visits, angelic hosts lighting up the night sky, remarkable signs in the heavens, Magi arriving, dreams, spontaneous prophecies, glorious greetings, prayers of praise, and blessings given in the temple - each and every person was blessed because they believed and acted on what God said. They took him at his word, stepped out in faith, and found the Gift and the blessing. There was Zechariah, who struggled, but even in that he experienced God's corrective grace. After months of silence, he stepped out in response to the angel's message and named his son John. Elizabeth & Mary both believed, embracing the miraculous work of God. Joseph heard God's message through the angel and took Mary as his wife. The Magi saw God's message in the stars and left their home in pursuit of God's revelation. The shepherds heard, left their flocks, and found the Chosen One. Simeon listened to the Spirit and went to the temple to see his Savior, as did Anna, who lived there and met her Lord. Each of these believed and were blessed.
"Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" These words, spoken by Elizabeth through the Holy Spirit, are not just for Mary. They are for all of us. They are both a challenge and a promise. They challenge us to have a living faith, to stand firm and hold fast to what the Lord has said, to step out and act on what we believe. They promise the blessing of God, and provide assurance as we choose to move out in faith. The question is, do we believe that what the Lord has said will be accomplished? This really is the bottom line. There is no other question. If we actually lived according to the promises of God, if our choices were based off belief in who he is and what he has said - as opposed to fear and doubt, how different would our lives be? What gifts would await us? How would our lives be touched by the Divine? Maybe we would understand and experience the blessing of God in ways that we never have. Maybe we would come to appreciate that divine blessing is less about temporal desires and more about living in the fullness of God. This Advent can be our season of belief and blessing. It can be our time to listen to the Spirit, to take God at his word, to act on what he's said, and in so doing find the Gift and the blessing.