The People of Advent, and the People We’re Becoming
A devotional from Emmanuel Chapel, Methodist Church Nigeria, Ikoyi, Lagos.
“The Lord has done this for me.” – Luke 1:25
This Advent reflection brings us to Elizabeth, a woman whose story doesn’t shout, but speaks with remarkable strength. Scripture describes her as righteous and blameless. She waited for years, carried private disappointment, and still, she walked with integrity before God.
What was she hoping for? A child, a legacy, a long-held desire to see life grow within her. In her culture, motherhood was tied to identity, honor, and fulfillment. For Elizabeth, the ache wasn’t just physical, it was emotional, social, spiritual. She must have wondered, many times, if God had forgotten her.
But look at how God moves in her story: Elizabeth’s heartache was not hidden from heaven. Her tears were not wasted. Her waiting was not ignored.
Now, let’s bring that close to home.
This time of year in Lagos can feel intense. The roads are crowded, “Detty December” has begun, traffic stretches endlessly, insecurity affects our movement, and there’s pressure to finish the year well, even when we never asked for these expectations. Between deadlines, family responsibilities, financial demands, and the constant noise of the city, we can look calm on the outside and feel exhausted on the inside. On top of all these, we carry quiet prayers, the ones we whisper when no one is around, those prayers that make us cringe and cry, prayers about those things we so desperately need from God. Sometimes we think, “Lord, if only You would answer this one prayer.”
And when nothing changes, we ask ourselves: What else do I need to do? Do I pray louder? Attend more vigils? Find a priest to pray for me? Give a special seed? Fast for a longer period? Try a certain anointing oil or handkerchief?
In this reflection, Elizabeth teaches us something different. She teaches us to wait with grace and hope. She teaches us that waiting well begins on the inside, that it’s about the posture of the heart, not the condition of our circumstances.
Emmanuel – God with us, even in delay
Elizabeth did not allow waiting to harden her. She did not measure her worth by speed, success, or comparison. She did not interpret God’s silence as punishment. But when God finally moved and she conceived, her first response was worship: “The Lord has done this for me.”
And think about this, once she conceived, she still had months of carrying that promise to term in faith. Pregnancy was not automatic; it was a journey. There were days when she must have wondered, “Can my body carry this?”, “What if something goes wrong?”, “Will this miracle truly come to pass?” Yet Scripture tells us she hid herself for a while, not out of fear, but out of reverence. She protected the promise and nurtured it quietly. She believed that if God began it, God would sustain it. That is hope.
The same God who answers prayer will empower you to carry the answer. Not in anxiety, but in confidence. Not in fear, but in faith. This is an Advent word for everyone facing a similar situation: God will fulfill His promise, and He will give you the strength to carry it through.
Three lessons from Elizabeth’s Advent story
1. Stop comparing.
Elizabeth lived in a culture that measured women by what they produced. She held her peace in a world that tried to shame her. Comparison drains the spirit; gratitude fills it.
2. Let waiting deepen your character.
Elizabeth’s righteousness existed before the miracle, not because of it. Waiting shaped her, strengthened her, and prepared her to carry a promise. God forms character before He forms outcomes.
3. Trust God’s purpose in the outcome.
Elizabeth didn’t just receive a child. She carried John the Baptist, the one who would prepare the way of Jesus. Delay made room for destiny. What God is preparing in you may be bigger than what you’re asking for.
A Question for Reflection
Where do you feel forgotten by God? In your health? Your finances? Family expectations? Marriage? Your job? Social pressure to “do something” before the year ends? Elizabeth reminds us: God is still working, God is still present.
A Simple Advent Practice
Each evening this week, before bed, pause for one minute and pray: “Lord, teach me to wait with grace and hope. Quiet my soul.”
Then list three things God has done for you this year, even if they seem small. This is how we resist comparison and reclaim gratitude.
Prayer
Lord, thank You for teaching us about Elizabeth’s gentle strength and quiet confidence. Teach us to wait without frustration, to live without comparison, and to hold peace in a noisy world. Where year-end pressures overwhelm us, bring calm. Where insecurity and uncertainty stir fear, protect us. Where life tests our patience, renew it. Shape our character as we wait on You, and form in us a heart that would always say, “The Lord has done this for me.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
(Next in this Advent devotional blog series: Mary – When God Interrupts Your Plans with Purpose)
