NOTHING

Today’s Reading: Genesis 45:16-47:31

For the last three years I have had an 8×10 of this picture on my desk. “For nothing is impossible with God” Luke 1:37 It got put there as inspiration, to begin with, because I was living through an impossible marriage – but nothing is impossible with God and He changed that impossible marriage in thirty short days. I went from constantly being furious and unhappy with my husband and our relationship, to fulfilled and blissfully aware of our newfound intimacy. We recount that 30-day adventure in “True Intimacy” where I open the story with this very verse; for nothing is impossible with God, including an impossible marriage.

I find the story it is found in even more inspiring however; maybe because it is the story of Jesus’ conception through the Holy Spirit. You see the angel Gabriel has just come and announced to Mary that she will bear the Messiah; that she, little insignificant Mary has been chosen to be the woman to rear the God-head in human form. And she says to Gabriel “Ummm… I’ve never been with a man before, how is it that I am pregnant? I mean, I know I’m young and all, but I do know enough to know how these things work. I know that it takes a man AND a woman to make a baby so… how is this going to work… exactly?”

It makes me think of Sarah when the angels came to visit Abraham and told him that in a year from now they would have a child; and Sarah laughed. Why did she laugh? Because she was old and the “way of women” had stopped in her body. And on top of that Abraham had dried up! In other words they had stopped doing that dance a long time ago. So Sarah laughed because any natural way of conceiving was beyond them at this point.

While Sarah laughed, Mary asked “how can this be?” and this time God’s messenger Gabriel is the one who laughs. “Ha! You don’t know God very well do you? Nothing is impossible with Him! He’s GOD. He holds this planet in space, He keeps your little world spinning in motion, He tossed the stars in the sky and He knows the name of every single one of them, is anything too hard for Him? And yet you ask how He will do for you what He has said He would do? Nothing is impossible with God.” Just think, such a phrase as “nothing is impossible with God” was used to confirm to Mary that she need not concern herself with the “how”, but merely with the truth that God had chosen her to be His mother and His partner in His plan to save the world from guilt and condemnation.

This picture stood watch over me in my struggles to seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness so that I might receive the gift that God had chosen for me, intimacy in my marriage. This picture verse stood watch over me as I struggled to write that journey down so that others could find that gift as well. I had a dream of people actually reading what I had written and even when they weren’t, this picture stood watch over me reminding me that even this impossible dream could come true too if only I kept believing and seeking His face. And through it all Satan has been there shoving his lies in my face, trying to distract me from God’s goodness and promises with his half-truths his twisted thoughts and trying situations, and through it all God has ALWAYS pulled me back to His truth with one word, “nothing”. What is impossible for my God? NOTHING! What is it that God can not do for me His child? NOTHING!!!

This month, with a gift to the ministry you will receive:

Any amount – 4×6 greeting card.

$15 – Unframed 8×10 of Luke 1:37

$25 – Framed 8×10 of Luke 1:37 OR True Intimacy printed format (please designate which you would like to receive)

$45 or more – True Intimacy printed format, a framed 8×10 of Luke 1:37 & a framed True Intimacy contract

Contact me (tamarknochel@gmail.com) to donate, I’m working on some e-options at the moment but they’re not quite ready yet.