Happy New Year for Elizabeth (Part 1)

Elizabeth - Relative of Mary, Wife of Zechariah and mother of John the Baptist

Elizabeth sighed as she finished kneading the bread for the Sabbath meal.  Her husband Zechariah would be home soon from his assignment at the Temple, and she was tired from her daily tasks.  Elizabeth was no longer young and Zechariah was even older.  They loved each other deeply but the great sorrow of their lives was that they had no children to carry on the memory of their lives. 

Zechariah was a priest, and today it was his turn to enter the holy part of the temple and offer the sacrifices to God.  Elizabeth hoped he wouldn’t be delayed, because it had been a long day and she was tired. 

Illustration of the baby Messiah - And he will be their peace - Micah 5:5

Her mind wandered as she rested for a few minutes, and she thought with longing of the time long ago when her country was free.  She had never known a time when Israel could rule itself.   On the whole, the Romans weren’t as bad as some of the other rulers they had had.  Mostly they were allowed to follow the Law of God and temple worship wasn’t regulated too severely.  But she couldn’t help but think of the promise of the long-awaited Messiah who would lead his people to freedom from all oppression. 

What Elizabeth didn’t know, as she sat daydreaming, was that the long years of waiting would come to an end through events that would include her and Zechariah.  Within in a few minutes, that promise would begin to be fulfilled in a way that she couldn’t possibly imagine.