Key Thought

Speculation about a newborn is nothing new. Parents, family, and friends have looked down on a sleeping newborn and wondered, "What will this child turn out to be?" It was natural that people did this with John. However, they went beyond the normal speculation because they had reason to believe he was special. Conceived in Elizabeth's old age after his dad was on service in the Temple and lost his ability to speak made John special. Add in his surprising name and the return of his father's speech and you have an unforgettable birth. So their wonder and amazement led them to "prophesy": "The hand of the Lord is surely upon him in a special way." God was at work in John to do something spectacular. At the same time, we need to remember that God is at work in each child, from the moment of conception, to do something spectacular. Let's make a commitment to pray and to bless each child that God puts into our circle of influence!

Today's Prayer

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O glorious God, you alone are Creator of the universe and giver of life! Please use me to bless your precious children. Work in the hearts of our people so that we can value each child as you do. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Today's Verses in Context

When it was time for Elizabeth to give birth, she had a boy. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord (God) was very good to her. They were happy for her. When the baby was eight days old, they came to circumcise him. They wanted to name him Zechariah because this was his father's name. But his mother said, "No! He will be named John." The people said to Elizabeth, "But no one in your family has this name (John)!" Then they made signs to his father, "What would you like to name him?" Zechariah asked for something to write on. Then Zechariah wrote, "His name is John." All the people were surprised. Then Zechariah could talk again. He began to praise God. And all their neighbors became afraid. In all the hill country of Judea people continued talking about all these things. All the people that heard about these things wondered about them. They thought, "What will this child (John) be?" They said this because the Lord (God) was with this child.

— Luke 1:57-66 (ERV)

Easy-to-Read Version copyright © 2001 by World Bible Translation Center. All rights reserved.