Chapter 3: Episode 1: Mary's Faith in God's Plan

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Welcome to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast. I'm your host, Connie Morris.

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We are now in Chapter 3, Embracing the Miraculous and Believing the Impossible,

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Episode 1, Mary's Faith in God's Plan.

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Welcome to a podcast dedicated to exploring profound biblical stories and their

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practical applications in our lives.

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I am your host again, Connie Morris, and in this series, we will delve into

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the lives of key biblical figures,

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uncovering the depth of their faith and the lessons we can apply to our spiritual journey.

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In today's episode, we will explore the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus,

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focusing on her faith in God's plan as depicted in Luke chapter 1, 26-38.

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We will dive into her thoughts and feelings as a single woman chosen by God,

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supported by other scriptures, and we will cover some practical steps for our daily application.

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So stay tuned as we uncover Mary's incredible journey and how her story can

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inspire us to embrace the miraculous miraculous, and believe the impossible in our own lives.

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Welcome back. In this episode, we will explore the story of Mary,

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the mother of Jesus, focusing on her faith in God's plan.

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And so today we're going to, first, we're going to cover Luke,

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and I want to read it in its entirety from the message translation,

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Luke chapter one, verses 26 through 38.

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And so we're going to see what it feels like for Mary to be chosen by God as a single woman.

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So let's read that verses 26 through 38.

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In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to the

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Galilean village of Nazareth to a virgin engaged to be married to a man descended from David.

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His name was Joseph and the virgin named Mary.

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Upon entering, Gabriel greeted her. her, good morning.

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You're beautiful with God's beauty, beautiful inside and out. God be with you.

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She was thoroughly shaken, wondering what was behind a greeting like that.

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But the angel assured her, Mary, you have nothing to fear.

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God has a surprise for you. You will become pregnant and and give birth to a

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son, and call his name Jesus.

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He will be great.

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Because son of highest, the Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

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He will rule Jacob's house forever.

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No end ever to his kingdom.

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Mary said to the angel, but how?

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I've never slept with a man. The angel answered, the Holy Spirit will come upon you.

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The power of the highest hover over you.

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Therefore, the child you bring to birth will be called Holy Son of God.

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Verses 36 to 38. And did you know that your cousin Elizabeth conceived a son old as she is?

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Everyone called her barren. And here she is six months pregnant.

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Nothing you see is impossible with God.

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And Mary said, yes, I see it all now.

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I'm the Lord's maid, ready to serve. Let it be with me, just as you say.

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Then the angel left her. And so we're going to cover Mary's faith in God's plan.

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And we see how eager Mary was to just carry on with what God said.

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But we also noticed that she was talking with an angel.

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So we know that she had a certain relationship with God in order for God to even send an angel.

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So we're going to cover just some topics here about just the main points,

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the divine encounter. We're going to cover that in more detail.

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Mary's initial reaction to what God said to her through the angel of God,

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the announcement of Jesus' birth, Mary's question and Gabriel's explanation,

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and then Mary's faithful response.

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So in the NLT, we're going to cover one verse at a time, and we're just going

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to walk through Mary's reaction.

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One thing I love about the Bible and love about how God speaks to his children

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and those who will listen is that he has something for everyone in the Bible.

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You see, no one knows this about me, that I was a single woman with child.

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My first child was, I was 16 years old.

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And so when we look at all the things that's happening in the news and all the

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things that they talk about, the word abortion and how that's the option.

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And now they have the pills and all these different easy ways to get rid of a child.

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It's like, God says, hey, Mary, can you have this baby for me?

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And, you know, the first thing people would say is something else like this

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is going to disrupt your life.

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Like God gives the baby to the child, right, to a young Mary.

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And my child now, I won't give you her age, but she has a beautiful name. Her name is Alexandria.

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Gave her a nice long name because I know she was going to do something, something mighty.

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Because I did something mighty. I gave birth to her. And so let's go on to a divine encounter.

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So every pregnancy that we have is a divine encounter.

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You know, God wants us to have it within our marriage relationship,

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but a baby is a baby, right?

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And so verse 26 to 28, the angel, we're going to start here, the divine encounter.

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So divine encounter with the angel of Gabriel.

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Now I'm not giving right to fornication, but I'm not also giving right to abortion.

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So let's not get it twisted. Just talking about this holy encounter encounter

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that the angel had with Mary, that out of all the young ladies in the world

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at that time, God chose Gabriel.

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God chose Gabriel. God chose Mary. So let's read it.

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It says in verse 26 to 28, let me get my Bible back out.

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You know, there's so much to say here because I'm just living my life through

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these scriptures of Mary saying, yes, I will do this, Lord, for you.

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I will carry baby Jesus.

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How do you explain that to your friends? You know, so I'm going to read it in the NLT.

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It's in verse 26 through 38. It says in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy,

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God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary.

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Mary, she was engaged to marry, engaged to be married to a man named Joseph,

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a descendant of King David.

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So Joseph wasn't just a random guy either, right? You know, he was part of the

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descendant of King David.

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Gabriel appeared to her and said, greetings, favorite woman, the Lord is with you.

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And so this encounter showed how God chooses and prepares us for a divine purpose.

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Often in unexpected ways, Mary, a young single woman in a humble town.

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Is suddenly thrusted into a divine plan that changes the course of history.

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And so when we look at the scripture of Jeremiah 29, 11.

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If you have been following my podcast, you know, this is a scripture that has

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spoken to me for the last 30 years of my life.

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And it still speaks to me today.

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And now you understand why it says, for,

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I know the thoughts and plans I have for you declares the Lord plans to prosper

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you and not to harm you plans to give you a hope and a future.

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The hope and the future that he promised me was not just for me. It was for my child too.

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So for I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper

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you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.

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So the angel Gabriel meets Mary and gives her a plan.

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And this plan was a big plan and it was way bigger than her.

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And we know that even as those mothers out there, when we say yes to having

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a baby, that we know that this plan is way bigger than us.

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We have given up all the things that we thought we were going to do.

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And now we've committed to just taking care of our new baby, but not alone,

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because God says here, for I know the plans, it has an S on it,

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because it's two of us now,

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that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans with an S, to prosper you and

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not to harm you, plans with an S, to give you hope.

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And a future. Let's go to the second part, Mary's initial reaction.

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Let's go to verse 29 here.

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It says, confused and disturbed. Of course you are, aren't we?

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Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.

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So it goes, Mary's initial confusion and concern reflected her humanity and

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the natural a response to divine intervention.

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It's natural. Like this, it says, God has chosen you just to disrupt your life.

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And you know, we have these big plans, you know, and I laugh now,

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my plans was to, at the time that I got pregnant, I was in modeling school and

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I had big plans to become a lawyer.

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I wanted to be a lawyer and a supermodel.

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And so my plans was disrupted because I got, I, you know, was pregnant. I got pregnant.

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And so my plans was initially like Mary's confused and concerned,

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like, okay, how are we going to do this now?

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And remember when you're 16, do you have a job to take care of a baby? I don't think so.

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Mary had Jesus. Mary had the angels. Mary had this plan set out.

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I like to make the Bible stories like my story.

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So join me in this. Okay. So Mary's initial confusion and concern reflected

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her humanity and natural response.

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It's like we will have a response to the divine intervention.

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I would say to a divine interruption.

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Imagine Mary's thoughts, fear, uncertainty, and perhaps a sense of unworthiness.

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How would she explain this to her family and Joseph, my mom?

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Yet amidst her confusion, there was a willingness to listen and understand.

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So even though she didn't quite understand what was going on,

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in her heart of heart, she knew she was going to say yes.

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And then the scriptures to support this, Isaiah 41.10.

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This is another one of my favorite scriptures. You could just mark it down that

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the whole Bible is a favorite of mine.

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And it says, so do not fear for I am with you.

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Do not be dismayed for I am your God.

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I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous hand.

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Now, at the time when I was pregnant, I didn't have all this foundation.

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So I don't want you to think that I was all super

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spiritual I didn't have none of this But as I

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grew with the Lord I can see his hand at work in my life And I'm going to read

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this scripture again Because even though Mary was confused And she was concerned

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And in her mind she was wondering How she's going to tell everybody about this encounter,

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And you think about a teenager like myself.

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And how am I going to tell my mom and my dad about this experience,

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knowing that I'm not going to go do that thing?

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I've decided already that modeling school is going to have to wait.

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The lawyer thing is going to have to wait.

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I made this thing happen. I'm

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going to have to take on this full responsibility of the outcome. come.

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In Isaiah 41 10, it says, so do not fear for I am with you.

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Do not be dismayed for I am your God.

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I will strengthen you and help you.

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I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

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So understand that when we stand for the right thing, God said his righteous right hand.

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So I want you just close your eyes and picture yourself holding God's right

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hand, your right hand and his right hand.

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And he's holding you when you don't know what to do.

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God's hand is in your hand holding you.

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And he's whispering into you, into your ears, telling you like,

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sweetheart, do not Not fear, I am with you.

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Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

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I will strengthen you and I will help you. And I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

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He's not done, for I know the thoughts and plans I have for you.

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Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. And plans to give you a hope and a future.

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That's what God is telling you. That's what God was telling Mary.

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Let's go to the verses 30 through 33.

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It says, Mary asked the angel, how can this happen? I am a virgin.

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And the angel replied, how can this happen? 30, 33, let's back it up.

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30, here we go. It says, don't be afraid, Mary. The angel told her,

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for you have found favor with God.

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You will conceive and give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus.

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He will be a very he will be very great and he will be called the son of the most high.

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The Lord will give him the throne of his ancestor David and he will reign over Israel forever.

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His kingdom will never end.

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So Gabriel reassures Mary, explaining that she will give birth to Jesus,

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the son of the most high, whose kingdom will never end. Now,

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that's a big responsibility.

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Mary's probably heard about Jesus, that Jesus is going to give birth through

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a virgin, but who would have thought that that virgin would be her?

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Like, that's like, it's me.

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That version is me. Think about what Mary was imagining.

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That version that I read about in the Bible, that version is me.

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That God has found favor with me. So God's plans often exceeds our understanding,

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requiring us to trust in his more excellent vision and purpose.

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For Mary, this meant accepting a role that carried great responsibility,

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potential social stigma, yet she shows to trust in God's promises, his God's promise.

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Let's go to Proverbs 3, 5 through 6.

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It says, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.

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In all your ways, submit to him and he will make your path straight.

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So when Mary said yes, she knew what that meant.

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She knew that that social stigma, just like it meant when I was 16,

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which was years, years ago, that that caring

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of having a baby now it seems like something it's

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still a sick stick sick i can't say a stigma but back a long time ago it was

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a more of a stigma you know but when when she said yes to god she knew what

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that that meant it's just like when i say yes to god i knew what that meant.

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Even my parents looked at me like, you say, yes, I want to keep my baby.

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Connie, you know what that means? Yes, I do. And I'm going to keep my baby. So let's just go with it.

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And that seemed to kind of be my attitude with a lot of things to this day.

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I probably got that from my family. One of my parents haven't figured out who yet, right?

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So I'm just going to I'm gonna go roll with it because I'm glad I did because

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my child is just wonderful.

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It wasn't always good. It wasn't shiny.

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It wasn't a rose garden. It wasn't lollipops and unicorns. But at the end of

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the day, the fight was well worth it.

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It says, trust in the Lord with all your heart.

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Lean not to your own understanding.

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In all your ways, submit to him and he will make your ways path.

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Make your way straight. A lot of times when you You don't understand what God

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is doing to say, Lord, I don't quite get it, but I'm going to trust.

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I'm going to just trust in you.

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And I remember saying that prayer. And like I said, I wasn't I don't know if

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I did accept Jesus as Lord and Savior when I was younger, but still didn't quite

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understand the concept until now.

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You know, so let's let's go back to Luke one.

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Let's go to verse 34 to 37. seven, we're going to see how Mary was not afraid to ask questions.

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I think God likes when we respond. God is not like the, we always think he's like ruler.

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He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Don't get me wrong.

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But he's a communicator too. He likes when we just ask for a little more details.

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How's this going to happen? Because I read about this in the Bible that I knew

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that it was going to be a virgin and I read how it was going to do it,

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but I didn't know it was going to be me.

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So talk to me how this is going to take place.

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And so let's go to verse 34 to 37.

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Mary asked, ask the angel, but how can this happen? I'm a virgin.

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And you go like, duh. Mary asked the angel, how can this happen? I'm a virgin.

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The angel replied, the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the

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Most High will overshadow you.

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So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.

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What more? Your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age.

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People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son,

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and she is now in her sixth month.

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Wow. For the word of God will never fail.

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So God gave her something to hold on to. Mary asks how this can be,

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and Gabriel explains the Holy Spirit's role,

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citing Elizabeth's miraculous pregnancy as a sign. of God's power.

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He says, this is believe in the miraculous, right? So we're talking miraculous and impossible.

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Both of those is how God works, right? Signs and wonders, miraculous, miracles.

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Seeking understanding through faith is natural. And God provides reassurance

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through signs and the experiences of others.

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Mary's question shows her desire to comprehend this miraculous event,

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not from a place of doubt, but from a place of faith-seeking understanding.

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That's powerful. I want to read that again.

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Seeking understanding through faith is natural, And God provides reassurance

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through signs and the experiences of others.

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Mary's question shows her desire to comprehend this miraculous event,

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not from a place of doubt, but from a place of faith, seeking understanding.

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You see, Mary didn't doubt it. That's the way she asked. She says, how...

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Could this be? I'm a virgin. So she pretty much said, I know how babies are

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conceived and I've never been with a guy.

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And so she says, how's this going to go? And he says, it's going to happen like this.

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And then the scripture to support, this is James 1.5.

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If any of you lacks wisdom, wisdom.

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You should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault.

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And if finding fault and it will be given to you.

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And some translations say given to you liberally. I mean, you're going to have so much of it.

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And so if you don't understand something, you ask, how should this be?

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God may say, I want you to do, Hey, kind of, I want you to start a podcast.

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I'm like, how do I I start a podcast.

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I didn't ask in doubt. I asked in understanding, how do I do this?

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And he began to walk me step by step by step by step by step.

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And I know some podcasts has music and I'm not really into music.

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I think sometimes to me, it can be distracting.

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I tried it once. I'm not a DJ. So I decided I'm just going to just talk.

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One day in the future, I might had some music in it, you know,

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but meanwhile, I asked and he gave me wisdom.

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And so as we follow God, do not be afraid to ask the question,

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not asking in doubt, but asking as understanding.

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And then verse 38, it says, Mary responded, I am the Lord's servant.

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May everything you have said about me come true. Oh, that's good.

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And then the angel left. May everything you said about me come true.

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Wow. Mary responds with humility and obedience, accepting God's will with the words.

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May your words to me be fulfilled.

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That's one way. I am your servant. May everything thing you have said about me come true.

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And other translations says, be it unto me according to thy word.

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However Mary said it, she said yes to God.

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She said yes to God, even though I don't quite understand this whole big picture, but I say yes. I say yes.

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Philippians 4.13 says, I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

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Sometimes our first response to God is like, you want me to do this?

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This is, you know, we say the wrong thing.

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A lot of times we should just write it down and maybe search it out in the scripture,

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maybe do a little research on the side and see how others have done it and say,

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Say, Lord, how would you have me to do this and say, Lord, be it unto me according to thy word.

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May your word to me be fulfilled.

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Right. So let's just kind of explore how Mary felt, you know, in this whole process.

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We kind of we did that already, but let's just kind of do a quick review.

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It says fear and faith. Mary likely felt fear and anxiety about her future,

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her relationship with Joseph.

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Joseph remember she didn't she we haven't even

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had Joseph in this part yet we if you know the story God had to talk to Joseph

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in a dream because we'll finish Joseph and her standing in the community yet

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her faith in God's plan gave her the courage to move forward she think about

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it she's a single a woman.

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She's engaged to be married to Joseph.

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Now she's pregnant and she hasn't even told Joseph that she's pregnant.

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And society back then was probably very, you know, it was the,

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just that whole idea of the single woman's pregnant before she's married.

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And I don't want to go into that history because that'll be

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another you know this what time

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is okay it'll go too long but they were probably stoning

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her and kick her you know they'll be

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worse than society today right and then we also know that she was lonely and

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without support so next thing that mary did and we're going to get into how

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she met went with elizabeth so she

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left after she left the angel left she immediately went on the journey.

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So journey from Nazareth to visit Elizabeth, she just kind of walked, take a walk.

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So after that, after that big event with the angel, it says she walked to Elizabeth.

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Why? Because the angel already told in confidence what was already happening at Elizabeth's house.

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I don't think Elizabeth was out having a party about her new baby because she

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was keeping that on the low.

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Mary probably wasn't going to go share her story with anyone.

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So we got two secrets, keeping that on the, on the low, keeping it quiet.

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And so as she was walking to Mary's house, she was probably in deep solitude

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and thinking about meeting Elizabeth, telling Elizabeth her secret.

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And, you know, they brought, she's like, I can't wait to talk to somebody.

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I got to tell somebody what just happened for me.

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I need someone to affirm what just happened to me because this is big. This is big.

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And then we know marriage was courage that she had great courage and commitment. One to God.

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Mary accepted her role so amidst courage.

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She had to prepare herself for motherhood under extraordinary condition and

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circumstances, relying solely on her faith and God's guidance.

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Number two, she had to just prepare to accept her rejection from Joseph.

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Remember, she's pregnant by the Holy Spirit. I mean, in the normal sense,

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that's not a normal thing to say.

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So she had to be ready to be rejected by society, ready to be rejected by her

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fiance, her soon-to-be husband.

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Her parents probably thought that might've been a little bit different.

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So she's just kind of like, Like I'm going to go have to go confirm what's just happened to me.

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And I think a lot of times when something big like this miraculous,

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believing in the miraculous, you know, embracing the miraculous and believing

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in the impossible, it does take a moment to let it settle in.

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Sometimes it's that moment to just, you know, just write it down and just let

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it settle in. and find someone to confirm it if you can, if you can't.

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And God usually have someone that you can confirm it with just so you don't

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think that you're losing your mind, you know?

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So how do we apply this to our everyday life?

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Number one, you want to trust, trusting God's plan.

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When faced with uncertainties, remember Mary's example of trust and submission

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to God's will. How do you do that?

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Identify areas in your life where you struggle to trust God's plan.

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Pray for faith to submit to these to him.

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So I would say, you know, it says a practical tip is keep a journal of instances

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where you trusted God despite uncertainties and how he worked through these

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situations. So you can find a journal of instances where you trusted God despite,

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write some things down that God has told you to do. Just write them down.

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A lot of times we want them to just go away.

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We go, you know, I, I believe I can fly. Right.

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And we want to write up, just, just write it down.

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God told me to do this. Just write them down, check them off.

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Right. Just write them down and just pray, Lord, I need wisdom on how to do these things.

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So, and then trust in his timing that he's going to show you how to do those things.

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And then as he shows you how to do those things. Don't try to write them on

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that same page. Trust me, trust me.

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Give them their own page. So make sure you have a big enough journal,

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big enough notebook that each one deserves its own page.

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Okay. And then as he begins to talk with you about those things that you,

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he's telling you to do, he will give you exact instructions and how to do those things.

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And that will, so now you have those instructions and then you just pretty much wait for his timing.

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So the first thing is trusting in God's plans.

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We don't know uncertainties. You just write down what he told you to do,

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write it on the plane, like write it down, right? You can write a list.

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You can put it on a plane page, put the date on there.

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Sometimes you can put the time on there. and as you begin to continue to pray,

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start writing down what he has said.

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You might get scripture, you might get, you know, things start popping up.

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You might be a commercial that can help you. It might just be,

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you know, you get those feeds on your phone.

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Somebody might say a word or phrase. You know, there's some things that always

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keep you, you keep praying about it, it'll keep coming before you.

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And so number one, trusting God's plan and keep a journal.

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And then when they are fulfilled, make sure you make a note of how they're fulfilled.

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Sometimes a picture. We keep a lot of pictures. I have a journal on my phone.

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So I write a lot of things down, but I also keep a journal on my phone where

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I write things down inside of my journal on my phone.

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So I keep a note of everything because I like to know when things are fulfilled and how you said do this.

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And I'm listening and learning how things are done. And I'm like,

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dang, okay, he said that. Okay, I hear that. Okay, I'm doing that now.

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Because remember, I'm writing devotionals. I'm doing podcasts,

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but God's still talking to me about devotionals too.

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And so things are still moving forward, even though I'm still in this new process of doing podcasts.

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So that's how you trust in his plan. It's forever. Remember,

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I'll give you a plan. Plans with an S.

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It don't stop.

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It won't stop. Let's go. Number two, recognizing divine favor. Oh my.

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Understanding that being chosen by God often comes with challenges. Did I say challenges?

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Understanding that being chosen by God often comes with challenges.

396
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Because I decided to keep my baby Alexandria, didn't mean it was going to be

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easy, but his presence is our strength.

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Reflect on moments when you felt God's favor in your life and how it has shaped your journey.

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And a lot of times you won't feel it when you're in it.

400
00:34:08,577 --> 00:34:11,737
I always felt it when it was over, right?

401
00:34:12,077 --> 00:34:17,057
Sometimes you can feel a little glimpse of glory as you're going through it.

402
00:34:17,097 --> 00:34:22,657
But a lot of times when you reflect back, you know, so it's good to write your

403
00:34:22,657 --> 00:34:25,117
journey while you're in it,

404
00:34:25,157 --> 00:34:31,657
but it's also good that you can reflect back to see what God has done for you

405
00:34:31,657 --> 00:34:35,057
because God said he has a plan for you,

406
00:34:35,117 --> 00:34:38,517
for a hope and a future, and a lot of times when we're in it,

407
00:34:38,557 --> 00:34:46,437
we can't see it so reflect on the moments when you felt God's flavor, God's favor in your life.

408
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Practical tip here, it says, create a gratitude list.

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Like I said, gratitude list that highlights God's favor in your life and review it regularly.

410
00:34:57,919 --> 00:35:03,159
Yeah. So while you're in the fog of it, remember in the middle of the challenges,

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00:35:03,199 --> 00:35:06,099
like I said, there's some glory lights that show up.

412
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Just go ahead in the middle of your journal, you go ahead and write some good

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things that have happened.

414
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Because if you don't see the glory in the middle of your challenges or the middle

415
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of your struggle, we often will fade out.

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We forget that God is not in it when he's in it all the time.

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Okay. And so number two, we said, number one, trusting in God's plan.

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Number two, recognizing divine favor. These are practical application.

419
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Number three, seeking understanding through prayer.

420
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Like Mary, ask questions, seek understanding through prayer,

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trusting that God will provide clarity.

422
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Commit to a daily prayer routine where you bring your doubt and questions before God.

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I think I mentioned that in every one of my podcasts, that you have a question, just ask.

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Set a time to have a Q&A with the Lord.

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How about that? I like that one. That's new. Have a Q&A with the Lord.

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Just have a Q&A with the Lord. Like Mary, ask questions.

427
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Like I told you, write the questions down and ask the Lord, I got questions.

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Do you want me to do this? How do I do this? Maybe it's a lack of finance,

429
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maybe a lack of confidence.

430
00:36:25,379 --> 00:36:30,099
Maybe it's a lack of something that you need to do that process.

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00:36:30,799 --> 00:36:35,299
Get some more clarity on what you need to do. I mean, that's during your prayer time.

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If you have a holy language, you pray in your most holy language.

433
00:36:40,179 --> 00:36:41,939
If you don't have a holy language.

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00:36:42,939 --> 00:36:47,779
Find out how to get one. I think I have one in my journal, but you can go through the Bible.

435
00:36:47,839 --> 00:36:50,939
It says, ask, and he will give it to you. That's a question you can ask.

436
00:36:50,999 --> 00:36:55,579
Lord, I need this holy language so I can pray out these mysteries and secrets, right?

437
00:36:56,299 --> 00:37:05,299
So set aside specific time each day for prayer and meditation and seek God's wisdom and guidance.

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You can't do it without them.

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00:37:08,219 --> 00:37:12,479
So you want to seek understanding through prayer. And the fourth one,

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facing fear and anxiety.

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00:37:14,779 --> 00:37:20,939
1 Peter 5, 7 says, cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

442
00:37:21,299 --> 00:37:27,099
You know, practice just relaxing. It says practice meditation.

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00:37:27,459 --> 00:37:35,139
Meditation is just sitting quiet and just breathing and thinking on his word, thinking on him.

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00:37:35,239 --> 00:37:38,839
When you're casting your care, you're just thinking about giving it to him,

445
00:37:38,899 --> 00:37:41,399
not taking it back. on the promises.

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00:37:41,799 --> 00:37:46,919
I have these decrees that I've given. So like I said, each of these devotionals,

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00:37:46,959 --> 00:37:49,419
they're available for you free on my website.

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00:37:49,659 --> 00:37:56,639
Grab those decrees. Of course, there's more decrees in the devotional than I read out on the podcast.

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00:37:56,959 --> 00:38:02,399
And just take the devotionals and make them your own. Create your own. Write your own.

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00:38:02,979 --> 00:38:04,799
Get to memorizing scriptures.

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Meditate on the scripture. Let the scriptures become alive in you.

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00:38:11,039 --> 00:38:16,639
My throat's getting a little dry here. Repeat scripture to remind you what God's care.

453
00:38:16,839 --> 00:38:20,939
Turn on the podcast again and repeat. Listen to the podcast again.

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00:38:21,239 --> 00:38:24,679
I miss that part. Repeat it.

455
00:38:24,859 --> 00:38:29,719
I go to sleep sometimes with my podcast on, just listening to the scriptures.

456
00:38:30,279 --> 00:38:34,539
It's kind of odd though, right? But sometimes maybe I don't I have time to read

457
00:38:34,539 --> 00:38:37,319
the Bible. I listen to myself talk, right?

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00:38:38,122 --> 00:38:44,502
Here we go. Next one, finding strength in community. Hebrews 10, 24 and 25.

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00:38:44,962 --> 00:38:51,962
It says, and let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and

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00:38:51,962 --> 00:38:57,382
good deeds and giving up meeting together, not giving up meeting together as

461
00:38:57,382 --> 00:38:59,222
some are in the habit of doing,

462
00:38:59,382 --> 00:39:04,922
but encouraging one another in all the more as a day approaching.

463
00:39:05,442 --> 00:39:10,482
And so this is like, Like, don't give up going to places where,

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00:39:10,622 --> 00:39:15,802
like, it's like iron sharpens iron. Like, people have stopped going to church.

465
00:39:15,962 --> 00:39:20,622
I think once we had an opportunity to have online church, people stopped going

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00:39:20,622 --> 00:39:25,742
to church, you know. And so church has become like this empty place where people don't go.

467
00:39:25,922 --> 00:39:31,842
But you need to go find a strengthened community, strengthen small groups.

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00:39:31,842 --> 00:39:36,722
So if you haven't found your small group, find your small group.

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00:39:36,842 --> 00:39:40,522
If you haven't found your church community, go to your church community.

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00:39:40,722 --> 00:39:46,242
I don't think there's any excuse for just sitting at home watching church at home.

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00:39:46,482 --> 00:39:51,982
If you want to be accountable, become part of an usher or a greeter.

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00:39:52,382 --> 00:39:58,842
That will at least get you there once a week just to be part of a community

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00:39:58,842 --> 00:40:04,062
that's serving the Lord. So engage in a faith community or a support group where

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you can share your experiences and find encouragement.

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00:40:07,162 --> 00:40:11,222
You'll find it's better because people will hold you accountable where you've been.

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00:40:11,562 --> 00:40:16,002
You know, they need to see your face. They need to see your face.

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00:40:16,102 --> 00:40:19,222
If you don't come here on such and such a day, people will hold you accountable.

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00:40:19,322 --> 00:40:23,502
Even the ones who don't normally speak to you, they still know that you're not

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00:40:23,502 --> 00:40:25,202
in the place at that certain time.

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00:40:25,682 --> 00:40:31,802
Okay? And then that last one is living out faith daily, Colossians 3.17.

481
00:40:32,703 --> 00:40:38,883
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,

482
00:40:39,223 --> 00:40:45,663
giving thanks to God, the Father through him, making a daily habit of dedicating

483
00:40:45,663 --> 00:40:51,123
your tasks and decisions to God, seeking his guidance in everything you do.

484
00:40:51,263 --> 00:40:59,923
And I always say a lot of times we will quit something because somebody maybe made us upset. said.

485
00:41:00,203 --> 00:41:03,263
And I, and, and sometimes, you know, that, that can be me.

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00:41:03,323 --> 00:41:09,563
I don't live under, you know, a tree or a rock, but I'll say I'm doing this for Jesus.

487
00:41:09,983 --> 00:41:16,383
And so if we make it a habit to do it for Jesus, like Mary, when Mary decided to,

488
00:41:16,483 --> 00:41:23,263
to have a baby, get, get pregnant by the Holy ghost and And then walk,

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we're going to talk about Elizabeth next week, you know, next episode.

490
00:41:27,463 --> 00:41:34,523
But to do that, he did it for Jesus, you know, and you have an issue and you

491
00:41:34,523 --> 00:41:36,143
say, well, I'm going to do this for Jesus.

492
00:41:36,383 --> 00:41:41,203
And people who know me are like, okay, you know, you don't feel like doing it,

493
00:41:41,223 --> 00:41:42,783
but you go, I'm going to do this for Jesus.

494
00:41:43,223 --> 00:41:47,343
Something comes off for you, that heaviness of that, not wanting to do it,

495
00:41:47,383 --> 00:41:50,763
not wanting to stay late, not even wanting to be there.

496
00:41:51,123 --> 00:41:54,843
Sometimes you just don't want to be there. I don't want to stay late. I want to go home.

497
00:41:55,163 --> 00:41:58,803
Why do I want to go home? Nothing here, but me, myself, and I,

498
00:41:58,923 --> 00:42:02,883
I just don't want to do that, but I'm doing it for Jesus, right?

499
00:42:03,463 --> 00:42:07,643
Doing it for Jesus. Even if you're married and some things you don't want to

500
00:42:07,643 --> 00:42:09,743
do in your marriage, you do it for Jesus.

501
00:42:10,943 --> 00:42:14,623
Children, you know, do it for Jesus. He did it for you.

502
00:42:15,003 --> 00:42:20,203
So just kind of doing everything in the name of Jesus. It makes things better.

503
00:42:20,363 --> 00:42:27,483
So the way that we are successful, just like Mary was able to do it for Jesus, we trust in God's plan.

504
00:42:27,703 --> 00:42:32,163
We recognize divine favor. We seek understanding through prayer.

505
00:42:32,323 --> 00:42:38,063
We ask the questions. We face our fear and anxiety. We cast it all on Jesus.

506
00:42:39,302 --> 00:42:44,242
Face strength and community. We find a local church or a local group just so

507
00:42:44,242 --> 00:42:45,342
we can be held accountable.

508
00:42:45,542 --> 00:42:48,562
And we live out our faith daily. We do it for Jesus.

509
00:42:48,942 --> 00:42:53,742
Let me just pray these decrees over you. I decree that like Mary,

510
00:42:53,902 --> 00:42:59,442
I will embrace God's plan for my life, trusting in his wisdom,

511
00:42:59,562 --> 00:43:02,702
even when his ways surpass my understanding.

512
00:43:03,022 --> 00:43:07,462
I believe that with God, all things are possible.

513
00:43:07,462 --> 00:43:13,802
I decree that I will seek and recognize God's divine favor in my life,

514
00:43:13,922 --> 00:43:18,122
knowing that his presence is my strength and assurance.

515
00:43:18,662 --> 00:43:24,202
And I decree that I will seek God's wisdom and guidance daily,

516
00:43:24,422 --> 00:43:30,702
trusting that he will provide clarity and understanding that I need.

517
00:43:31,562 --> 00:43:37,582
Thank you for joining. Thank you for joining me on this day. can't even talk.

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00:43:37,742 --> 00:43:42,042
Wow, that was a lot. Thank you for joining Diary of a Black Woman podcast on

519
00:43:42,042 --> 00:43:49,682
this journey through Mary's life and watching her and her extraordinary faith in God's plan.

520
00:43:49,922 --> 00:43:55,582
Hope that she was an example for you and that we too can do it for Jesus.

521
00:43:55,942 --> 00:44:00,162
Her story reminds us that even in the faith of uncertainty and fear,

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00:44:00,362 --> 00:44:05,182
we can trust God with a more excellent vision for our lives.

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00:44:05,362 --> 00:44:10,362
As we conclude this episode, remember that embracing the miraculous and believing

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00:44:10,362 --> 00:44:13,742
in the impossible starts with faith, trust,

525
00:44:13,982 --> 00:44:21,422
and a willingness to trust, the willingness to submit God's will to God's will, just as Mary did.

526
00:44:21,662 --> 00:44:28,242
Stay tuned for our next episode where we will dive into Elizabeth's belief in

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00:44:28,242 --> 00:44:35,322
the impossible and her miraculous experience and discover more about how faith

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00:44:35,322 --> 00:44:37,502
can transform our lives.

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00:44:38,182 --> 00:44:43,522
If you enjoyed this episode of Embracing the Miraculous and Believing the Impossible.

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00:44:44,402 --> 00:44:49,142
Please subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform.

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00:44:49,742 --> 00:44:56,682
Your feedback helps us to reach more people with these inspiring stories of faith.

532
00:44:57,582 --> 00:45:02,062
Share this podcast with your friends and family who might also be encouraged

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00:45:02,062 --> 00:45:04,782
encouraged by these powerful biblical narrative.

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00:45:05,422 --> 00:45:11,182
For more resources and to be connected with our community, visit my website

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00:45:11,182 --> 00:45:14,562
at diaryofablackwomanllc.com.

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00:45:14,762 --> 00:45:16,742
And thank you for listening.

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00:45:17,622 --> 00:45:22,322
And remember to embrace the miraculous in your own life every day.

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Until next time, may your faith be strong and keep believing in the impossible. God bless you.