God encourages us to speak life into things we may consider dead

All through the Word of God you can be assured and encouraged as you read about persons who were in a place of deficit, but God stepped in and upgraded their life.

The evidence of God’s care toward so many others gives hope that He will do the very same for you.

Let’s look at one example of God’s upgrading practice.

Luke 1: 5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

God was about to upgrade the priesthood. God used a couple that had the right pedigree, according to the priesthood.

They both came from the lineage of Levitical priesthood. Yet, even though they served God faithfully, and even though Zacharias executed the office of the priest faithfully, they were barren.

God used that couple to represent the state of the priesthood. Like that very old couple, the priesthood was old, barren, and unfruitful.

The people of that day no longer honoured and heeded to the voice of the priest, and they preferred to be under the rulership and governance of a king.

The couple was dead as far as having progeny or as far as being able to pass along the honour of operating as a priest to their offspring.

Yet, God chose that couple for an upgrade. God chose them because they were righteous, not because they were young and full of life. No! God took that very aged couple and spoke life into their dead places.

Pregnancy

The evidence was in the fact that Elisabeth became pregnant. Most likely, she had passed the time of menstruation and the time of being menopausal. 

For sure Elisabeth was no longer ovulating and, hence, there was no longer any hope in her mind that she would be a mother.

Yet, God upgraded the body of Zacharias and Elisabeth, because He desired to do a work through them that would result in all knowing that the miracle had to come by the hand and favour of God.

Zacharias and Elisabeth had hung in there. During a time when the priesthood was no longer respected, they still honoured their call.

Therefore, God would use the purity of the couple’s heart to usher in the birth of The Forerunner, John The Baptist.

It would be John The Baptist who would announce the new priesthood found in Jesus Christ.

Yes, when the priesthood was dying, God ordained that there would be a John The Baptist to introduce the better priesthood — the eternal priesthood.

This Bible account reminds me that no matter how impossible a situation looks, and no matter how dead a thing seems, God is able to speak life into that thing and into that situation. 

Hence, even while you may see certain things with your own eyes and you may call them dead, be encouraged to speak life in spite of it all.

Remember, that with God all things are possible. It just may be that God is waiting to use your empty, dead, depressing, and dishonourable place for His divine glory.

Respice finem.

Dr. Maria A. Seaman is the pastor of Shekinah Worship Centre, located at 98 North Shore Road, Hamilton Parish CR 01.