Your Kingdom Come

“Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard.” —Luke 1:13

We don’t know how long Elizabeth and Zechariah prayed for a child, but it was probably years. We know the end of the story, but Elizabeth had no way of knowing how things would turn out.

Isn’t that the way it is when we have unfulfilled longings? We pray about it. We obey God the best we can, and yet we still have disappointment or pain. Elizabeth and Zechariah spent years praying, but for a long time, there was no obvious growth. As we pray for God to hear our prayers, how can we continue to hope for His answer?

Before we pray for anything else, Jesus taught us to pray that God’s name will be glorified (Matt. 6:9–13). We want to pray that God’s kingdom will come and His will be done.

In hindsight, we can see what Elizabeth must have already known: her story was not about her. God used all those years of disappointment and waiting to write a miraculous story about His power and glory. He desires to do the same for us.