Latest / Arise Women of God / Fear Not: Lessons from Mary, Mother of Jesus

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Fear Not: Lessons from Mary, Mother of Jesus · Arise Women of God

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  What can we learn and apply from the calling of one of the most famous women in the New Testament, Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.
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  Today we're going to cover this beautiful story of her being called by an angel of God to be the mother of Jesus and her beautiful response and how we as women can feel and resonate with Mary all these
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  centuries later.
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  So stay tuned.
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  Welcome to Bible women in Bathrobes, the podcast where faith meets comfort.
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  Join us Tuesday morning as the gals from women warriors of light and their guests don bathrobes and dive into the inspiring stories of women in the Bible and the teachings of Jesus Christ.
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  From Esther's bravery to the sermon on the mount, we explore it all with warmth, laughter, sisterhood, and maybe even a few sleepy eyed moments.
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  Tune in, live or at your leisure, as we learn lessons from scripture which empower women today.
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  Hello and welcome to another episode of Bible Women and Bathrobes.
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  I'm your host, Tamara K.
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  Anderson.
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  And joining me today is Jen Wright.
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  Jen, thanks for being here today again.
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  My pleasure, Tamron.
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  And we are so excited to cover this story of Mary over these next few weeks and months.
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  We're going to be talking all about these witnesses of Jesus Christ around the nativity and Jesus's birth.
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  And we started last week with the story of Elizabeth and Zacharias and now and the angel Gabriel appearing to them.
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  And now we're transitioning, just not very long after, to the story of Mary and the angel Gabriel visiting her.
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  So I'm so excited.
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  If you want to follow along with us, we are in Luke, chapter one, and we're going to be covering verses 26 through 38 today.
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  So a lot of verses, but we're going to do our very best to cover it all, as in our chat today.
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  So, Mary, oh my gosh, you guys, I'm so excited.
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  I have been just anxiously awaiting that we could cover Mary as one of our Bible women.
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  And she is just the pinnacle of who we all want to be and become and be like.
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  And we get such few verses to really dive into her as a woman.
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  And these verses are just gold as far as Bible women go.
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  And her story and her witness of what happened to her and her part in the birth of our savior.
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  Just so beautiful.
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  All right, so we're going to kick it off with verse 26.
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  And it says, and in the 6th month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto the city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to virgin espouse to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's
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  name was Mary.
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  And I'm going to pause right there.
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  Any thoughts so far on this?
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  I love this part because Nazareth is nowhere.
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  Picture, like, the smallest city that, you know, with, like, hardly a stoplight.
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  That's Nazareth.
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  And this angel is coming directly to Maryland, who isn't married in the social structure.
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  She's very low rung.
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  Right.
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  And that God knows where Mary is in the city of Nazareth, and he goes directly to her with an angel, is just a sweet testament that he knows where we are, that we're never outside of his scope, and
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  that we're never outside of his purposes.
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  I really love that every time Nazareth is mentioned and they're going to continue right through all of Christ's life to say Jesus of Nazareth, like, did anything ever good come out of Galilee?
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  You know, it was.
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  And that he starts there with this woman he placed there.
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  I love.
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  It is.
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  It is.
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  I love everything you just said there.
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  I'm glad you covered all those things.
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  Cause they were swirling around in my brain, too.
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  And we'll talk more about Joseph's lineage from the lineage of David when we cover Joseph's witness and in a couple of weeks.
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  So don't worry.
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  We won't.
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  We will touch on that, but just not today.
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  And being a spouse, meaning she was engaged to be married.
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  These contracts were.
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  You're going to get married.
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  You know, it's pretty binding, right, Jen?
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  Yes.
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  And that, like a spouse, just means the first step had already been taken.
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  It was public knowledge.
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  Right.
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  And that they're in the middle of this engagement process.
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  It's pretty cool.
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  Yeah.
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  And then we come to the words of the angel.
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  He says in verse 28, and an angel came in unto her and said, hail, thou that art highly favored.
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  The Lord is with thee.
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  Blessed art thou among women.
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  And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
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  She's like, what in the world?
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  Like, she's a young teenage girl.
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  Why is this angel appearing to me?
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  Why is he saying I'm highly favored?
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  I don't know.
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  And I'll read verse 30, and then we'll pause and comment.
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  And the angel said into her, fear not, mary, for thou has found favor with God.
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  Thoughts on these verses, Jen?
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  I love a lot about it.
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  I love that God answers those questions that we have in our heart, because Mary doesn't speak that aloud.
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  And I think that the most tender things that we think about ourselves or about our relationship to God, they're often internal, and sometimes we don't have the capability to really utter them.
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  And I'm just always surprised by a God who answers that question, you know, that's deep in my heart, and he certainly does that with Mary here.
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  And I get it.
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  Her being like, what are you talking about?
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  It's just me.
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  I'm just me.
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  You know, our perspective versus God's perspective.
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  Yeah.
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  And I think back to, like, myself as a young teenager, and I think if anything like this would have happened to me, I would have been like, what I am, like the nobody at the back of the classroom.
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  Kind of like you were saying about Mary being from a little town in the middle of nowhere.
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  Like, that was how I felt.
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  Even though I wasn't from the middle of nowhere, I felt unimportant in God's scheme of things.
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  And I think, I don't know if Mary felt that way, but as a young teenager, I was trying to figure out my place in life and what would life would look like.
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  And here she was starting to take some step towards.
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  But I mean, I don't know.
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  You look like you wanted to say something there.
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  No, I just really like what you said as far as, like, questioning what your part is in life.
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  And I think, yeah, we really identify with that as teenagers.
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  I identify with it as in, like, midlife.
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  Right?
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  Like, what am I doing?
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  Am I doing it well?
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  Is this really what God wants for me?
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  Like, this question about what role am I playing in God's kingdom?
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  And does he really need me?
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  That is like a big life question, I think.
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  Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
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  And I think it's a good question for us to ponder because God often answers, like you said, those things that we're thinking about, maybe not vocalizing, maybe sometimes we are.
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  Do I really.
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  Do we often ask, do I really matter to you, God?
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  Do I have a part in your plan?
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  We might think it, but we might not ask it.
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  Do you know what I mean?
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  And I think it's okay for us to ask because he always answers those prayers of, am I important to you?
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  Do you love me?
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  Yep.
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  He just really does.
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  And I think, I mean, I love that an angel comes to Mary, but we're going to find out that friends come to Mary to confirm that, too.
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  And that Mary, in those relationships that are closest to her, she's going to have that confirmation.
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  And I think that we can gain that confirmation in the same way that when we're really struggling, we can and certainly should go to the God who's with us and has purpose for us and has love for us.
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  And when we can't access that, that we can trust those that are close to us, who we have those connections with to reflect that love back to us and to be real angels in our lives of connecting us
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  to that divine love of God.
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  Yeah, yeah.
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  Beautiful.
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  Okay, let's keep going.
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  I also really loved him that he says, fear not, because I guarantee you if an angel came to me, I would be so afraid.
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  And I love that he's saying fear not.
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  And I really wonder if sometimes we don't approach God out of fear, like, fear that, a, he won't answer us or that somehow we'll have been a disappointment to him.
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  And I think that angels repeatedly saying this part to people who are trying and who have a calling of saying fear not, it really is a message to us that God is someone to honor and to respect and
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  that we can bring that stuff with him, to him without fear of him, you know?
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  Yeah, yeah.
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  Kind of like a humble approaching God, but not being scared to talk to him, because whatever you're thinking or feeling or experiencing, whether it be anger, grief, concern, questions, he knows.
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  He knows that already and he still loves you.
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  Yes, yes.
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  Right?
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  Yeah, yeah, yeah, I love that.
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  Fear not.
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  Don't be afraid to approach God, and don't be afraid of what he might tell you.
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  Your calling is.
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  I think that's another lesson we can kind of pick out of this, is that sometimes we approach him, maybe were like, I don't know if I want to know.
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  I don't want to know what my mission is, because then I might have to do something.
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  Am I responsible for doing it then?
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  Oh, what?
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  You tell me so.
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  But don't be afraid to approach God, because whatever he has in store for you is grander and more incredible than probably you or I could ever imagine.
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  And he'll help you accomplish it, right?
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  Yeah.
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  And we see it.
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  We see it in scripture and we see it in Mary.
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  Yeah.
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  He'll be with her.
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  Yeah.
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  And then here comes what her mission is.
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  Verse 31.
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  And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shall bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus, and he shall be great, and shall be called the son of the highest.
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  And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David, and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever.
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  And of his kingdom there shall be no end.
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  I'm going to just pause right there.
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  These verses right here are such a beautiful witness of who Jesus is.
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  Sorry I got altered in there.
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  But so beautiful that one of the first people to know who he is is a woman, his mother.
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  This is your calling to give birth to who we have all been waiting for for centuries here, the pinnacle of God's plan.
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  Jesus Christ.
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  You know?
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  Any thoughts on those verses, Jen?
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  I just really love that.
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  I love that God is sharing this with Mary because as he is going to give up Jesus, so will she, to the greater good.
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  Right.
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  And I just think it is this moment that is hers.
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  I'm so grateful we have it in scripture.
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  I love Luke for the little insights that he has about how she's feeling or what she knows or what she thinks.
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  But this testimony of who he is, I think is what she's going to lean on, just like all of us lean on for who he is and how he's going to show up in our lives.
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  Wow.
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  So beautiful.
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  Basically, you're going to give birth to the king of kings.
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  How shocking and humbling.
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  I mean, they knew that he was going to come, but she's probably like, to me, this little nobody in this little tiny village, really.
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  But I love her.
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  Question to the angel.
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  And she says in verse 34.
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  And then said mary unto the angel, how shall this be seeing I know not a man?
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  So we learn here that is okay to ask questions if you don't understand, ask.
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  And the angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee.
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  Therefore, also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the son of God.
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  Whoo.
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  Wow, wow, wow, wow.
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  I'm going to keep going here because this ties into our story from last week.
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  And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the 6th month with her, who was called barrendae.
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  For with God, nothing shall be impossible.
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  I love that he tacks on an example of the miracles that God can perform and that nothing is beyond God.
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  Nothing.
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  Your cousin Elizabeth is six months pregnant.
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  Nobody knows yet, but I'm telling you to let you know that this is another witness, that this is possible with God.
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  Right.
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  Well, and I love that.
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  I love that Elizabeth is and that he lets her know.
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  I think God is like that.
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  He's going to let us know who we have in company as we go through spiritual journey.
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  Right?
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  As we go through spiritual strengthening.
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  And Mary is young, but I think she knows what's ahead of her.
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  Her saying she knows no man is.
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  Her saying socially she's not going to have friends.
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  She knows what it's going to look like.
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  For her to be pregnant without being a spouse, without being married.
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  And it is social ostracism.
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  And I think that it's just tender that God meets that need in her for company.
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  And I think that's sweet work that we do with each other here and in other places, which is you're going to have company along the way, that we have you, that you're going to have people who know God
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  and can point the direction there.
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  I really love that.
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  Yeah.
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  So, so beautiful.
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  Um, I'm thankful he she asked the question.
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  I'm thankful it was answered.
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  Yes.
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  And a testimony that this child is the son of goddess.
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  This is a holy thing that is happening to you.
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  And I also love the phrase for with God, nothing shall be impossible.
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  I think when any of us approach God, trying to figure out what our life mission is, and we start to get maybe little whisperings in our mind, sometimes they seem impossible.
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  Right?
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  We're like, there's no way.
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  I can't do that for my story.
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  I can't be the mother of kids with autism.
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  I don't know how to do that.
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  I can't write a book.
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  I can't start a podcast.
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  All these things have come into my mind, and yet this phrase right here, along with my mantra, which is, I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.
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  Those two verses, you smash those together, and you know that whatever God gives you, you can do not by yourself, but with him.
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  Right?
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  Well, I really love that.
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  And I love the tie into the next verse where she says, behold the handmaid of the Lord.
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  And her key phrase is, be it unto me.
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  Which is what you're talking about, tam, like, when you receive direction and you can't see a path forward, it's that step, right, that says, I'm gonna move forward with you.
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  I don't know.
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  I don't know where it's going, but be it unto me.
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  Whatever your will is, be it unto me.
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  And that is a faithful phrase.
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  I think she's still scared, right?
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  I think she still doesn't see the path.
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  She doesn't know how it's going to work out, but what she knows is that she can take the next step.
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  And when we open ourselves up to faithful acts like that, by saying, be it unto me, then God is going to unfold the most impossible, beautiful things that he can through his strength.
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  Yeah.
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  Oh, and then the angel departs.
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  And I think it's important that we mention this because we will often have these spiritual experiences and that are just beautiful and overwhelming.
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  And then the angel departs, or then the experience stops.
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  And I don't know about you, but Satan always sneaks in.
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  In those moments.
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  Every time the doubts.
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  Oh, yeah, the doubts come flying.
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  You're not good enough.
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  This is too hard.
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  You can't do this.
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  It's like.
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  It's like you're inundated after every spiritual experience with the adversary trying to combat you, moving forward.
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  Yeah.
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  Yeah.
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  Usually using fear.
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  Right.
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  It's that whole fear not thing.
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  I think the direction to fear not is for the moment and for after.
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  Like you said, every time there's going to be that overwhelming sense of, there'll be something that says that wasn't real, or you can't do it, or all of those fears just seem to swell and, gosh, that's hard.
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  What do you do in those times, Tamara?
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  Oh, my God.
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  I think one of the biggest lessons I have learned was, is that when I have a spiritual impression, to write it down as quickly as I can.
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  Because when those doubts come, I can go back and I can read.
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  This is what I.
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  This is what came to me.
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  This is how I felt about it, you know, peaceful, loving.
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  Like, I can do it.
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  So that when those doubts come, I'm like, okay, I'm going to go back and reread it because I need to re remember that God really gave me this to do and then pray for the strength to take the
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  next right step.
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  Right.
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  I don't know.
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  What do you do, Jen?
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  I think that's a huge one.
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  Is developing some method of being able to look back, whether you're going to write it down, whether you're going to talk about it with a trusted friend or confidant.
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  There has to be some way to access that feeling in the moment, because I do think you're so right.
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  It's going to be challenged and to be able to confront it back and say, no, this was real, and this is what I know.
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  And start that work of letting God's work unfold in us.
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  It requires a pretty good memory of what that love and connection feels like so that we can offer it to others and so that we can recognize it when it comes again.
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  Yeah.
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  I'm kind of thinking, as we kind of stew on these last few verses, how beautiful it is.
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  And you mentioned it briefly, and we'll cover a lot of this next week in our discussion of Elizabeth, the Elizabeth factor.
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  I can imagine her going through this experience and saying, who do I even talk to about this?
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  I mean, hey, mom, I don't know.
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  Listen.
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  I'm pregnant.
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  And, you know, I don't even know.
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  Did she talk to her mother?
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  We don't know.
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  We don't get that.
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  I love that the Lord pointed her in the direction she should go, and we'll cover this next week of her realizing that one of her next right steps was, I think I need to go visit Elizabeth.
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  You know, that she's had this miraculous thing happen to her, too, and that she's having a baby in her old age.
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  And then she's like, I think I need to go visit her.
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  It was like the Lord planted that seed of what the next thing you should do is and pointed her in the right direction, and we'll dive into that next week.
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  Any thoughts on that, Jenny?
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  No, I just really love that.
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  I think God's plan for us is the plan for all of us.
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  And so the people that are close to us, the people that were around, the people that certainly we love and who love us, that there is a divine spark that ties us together.
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  His plan for us individually is a plan for all of us to feel his love and that we have that divine responsibility to uphold each other.
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  And I love that we see it so clearly in the nativity story with all the people that are going to come and reassure this young couple who are just starting out and be able to confirm for them that
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  their spiritual impressions are on track, that they're doing the next right thing and are going to be able to provide them with that energy to keep taking the next right step and to do the next thing.
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  And God's plan often unfolds in that loving of each other.
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  Yeah.
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  We may not see an angel, you know, like from heaven, but we can be that angel to one another.
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  Right.
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  Absolutely.
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  And minister to each other the earthly angels.
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  Right.
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  And minister to each other in, in the hard times, in the challenges, in the.
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  I am stepping forward to fulfill my mission, you know, so hard.
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  But God does place people in our paths, and sometimes we have to beg him for the right person to step into our path.
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  Sometimes it's not super apparent.
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  Sometimes it's somebody without our sphere of influence, ones, you know, that help us on the right path.
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  So sometimes it's begging, help me find that person who's going to help me take these next right steps.
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  And.
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  And he opens that door when we ask, because if he's going to give us a mission, like with Mary, he's going to open the right door for the right people at the right time, at the right place.
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  We look back on Elizabeth's story and them waiting decades and finally getting pregnant and having this impossible thing happen to them.
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  I think it kind of prepares her for being able to then minister to Mary next week as we talk about that.
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  Absolutely.
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  And I love that we get to talk about that.
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  It's going to be great.
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  I know.
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  I know.
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  All right, well, let's wrap it up for today.
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  Takeaways.
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  Jen, what are some of your takeaways from our discussion today?
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  The story of Mary and the angel?
• 25:52
  Oh, just that we can believe him, that when we have.
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  And if you are wondering, is this God in my life that you can ponder and you can believe the mission that he's calling you to.
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  You can believe that you can move forward with him.
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  You can stop questions.
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  Oh my gosh.
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  You can still be super scared.
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  Like those things can be all in the stew, right?
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  But that you can believe that God has something in store for you and that he has a plan for your influence and that you, in little, wherever you are, are divine and that he knows that you're there.
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  I love that.
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  About this story of Mary.
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  Oh, God, I don't know if I can say anything better than you.
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  Amen.
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  Yeah.
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  And that all things are possible.
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  God, that's the only thing I would tack on.
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  And so don't doubt, move forward with faith, just like Mary and the impossible will become possible.
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  Just watch with awe as his miracles unfold.
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  Absolutely awesome.
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  Thanks for joining us today and look forward next week as we talk about Elizabeth and Mary and their witness to each other of Jesus Christ.
• 27:18
  Thanks for tuning in to Bible, women and bathrobes hosted by women warriors of Light.
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• 27:31
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• 27:42
  Just a friendly reminder, all opinions we share are entirely personal as we are trying to decipher and apply Bible teachings just like you are.
• 27:52
  Until next time, stay faithful and may your journey be blessed and illuminated by God's love.