Deposits
It’s a great feeling the first time you open a bank account and make that first deposit. Though it seems like just a seed, it’s exciting to know that it’s the first of many deposits and the start of making your money active and even growing under the interest the bank will give you.
Mary, Jesus’ mother, knows all about deposits - not a financial one, but a spiritual one. Most of us know the story because it’s where our Christmas story begins. Yep. Our Christmas story begins with a deposit being made. The angel announced the ‘opening of her account’, so to speak, and that God was ready to make a HUGE deposit into her. What a moment! I’m so glad her response was yes because so much good came out of that one Deposit!
It’s a story that I’m so glad we reflect on at least once a year during the holidays because it reminds us that 1) God is the initiator in our lives. He comes to us. Indeed, even the word “Emmanuel” means ‘God with us’. And 2) Although God is ready to give, He looks for our nod to see if we will receive it.
The beautiful thing about Mary’s story is that it’s meant to be an example for all Believers, showing us that God is a God that makes Deposits. If you’re a Believer, God has made a Deposit in you. He has filled your ‘womb’ with His very Life, with Himself. His very Presence, the Holy Spirit, is a Deposit guaranteeing that we are His. 2 Corinthians says, “He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” http://bible.com/111/2co.1.21-22.niv. If God didn’t make a Deposit in us, we actually would not even be spiritually alive.
And then once our ‘accounts’ are open, He continues to make Deposits. He pours revelation into us through His Word so we may learn more of who He is and who we are in relation to Him. Wisdom, Understanding, and Vision are all from Him, giving us eyes to see things clearly and without confusion. He deposits dreams into our hearts - His dreams for our life. In fact, everything we need is found in God’s Deposits.
The question today is: Is your account open and are you ready to receive?
Mary, Jesus’ mother, knows all about deposits - not a financial one, but a spiritual one. Most of us know the story because it’s where our Christmas story begins. Yep. Our Christmas story begins with a deposit being made. The angel announced the ‘opening of her account’, so to speak, and that God was ready to make a HUGE deposit into her. What a moment! I’m so glad her response was yes because so much good came out of that one Deposit!
It’s a story that I’m so glad we reflect on at least once a year during the holidays because it reminds us that 1) God is the initiator in our lives. He comes to us. Indeed, even the word “Emmanuel” means ‘God with us’. And 2) Although God is ready to give, He looks for our nod to see if we will receive it.
The beautiful thing about Mary’s story is that it’s meant to be an example for all Believers, showing us that God is a God that makes Deposits. If you’re a Believer, God has made a Deposit in you. He has filled your ‘womb’ with His very Life, with Himself. His very Presence, the Holy Spirit, is a Deposit guaranteeing that we are His. 2 Corinthians says, “He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” http://bible.com/111/2co.1.21-22.niv. If God didn’t make a Deposit in us, we actually would not even be spiritually alive.
And then once our ‘accounts’ are open, He continues to make Deposits. He pours revelation into us through His Word so we may learn more of who He is and who we are in relation to Him. Wisdom, Understanding, and Vision are all from Him, giving us eyes to see things clearly and without confusion. He deposits dreams into our hearts - His dreams for our life. In fact, everything we need is found in God’s Deposits.
The question today is: Is your account open and are you ready to receive?
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a
descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said,
“Greetings, favored woman!
The Lord is with you! ”
Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.
And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month.
For the word of God will never fail. ”
Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.
Luke 1:26-38 NLT
http://bible.com/116/luk.1.26-38.nlt
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