Allow the Impossible to Unfold

Devotional

Day 1: Grace Finds the Ordinary and Calls You Favored

Grace often arrives in places that look too small to matter. Nazareth was a backwater, and Mary did not see herself as important, yet the greeting came: favored one—the Lord is near to you. Like her, you may feel perplexed when God names you with a grace that doesn’t match your self-identity. He is no respecter of hometowns, resumes, or reputations. He comes close, not because you earned it, but because He has chosen to pour out favor. Let His greeting stand over your ordinary today. [03:40]

Luke 1:26–30: God sent Gabriel to a Galilean town called Nazareth, to a young woman pledged to Joseph, a descendant of David. He told her she was graced and not alone, for the Lord was with her. Disturbed by the words, she wondered what such a greeting meant. The angel calmed her: do not fear; you have found favor with God.

Reflection: Where does your self-identity resist being called favored by God, and what simple prayer could you speak today to receive His nearness in that place?

Day 2: Fear or Curiosity: Two Ways to Respond

Zechariah stood in the holy place, seasoned and faithful, and fear gripped him when the messenger appeared. Mary stood in a humble room far from the temple, and she was puzzled but open. Their stories remind you that your past, your position, or your surroundings do not have to dictate your response to God’s grace. Some meet grace with a demand for a sign; others meet it with a question that seeks understanding. God fulfills His plan in both cases, yet the journey can be very different depending on the posture of the heart. Today, choose openness over fear. [10:10]

Luke 1:11–13, 18–20: As Zechariah offered incense, an angel stood by the altar and said he need not fear; his prayer had been heard, and his wife Elizabeth would bear a son to be named John. Zechariah asked how he could know this, noting their old age. The angel answered that the promise would surely happen, and Zechariah would remain silent until the day it did, so he would learn to trust God’s word.

Reflection: What specific barrier are you holding up to God—age, resources, history, or timing—and what would laying it down sound like in a brief prayer of trust today?

Day 3: Ask How, Not for a Sign

Mary’s response was not about proof but about process—how will this be? This is the language of faith seeking understanding, the curiosity that leans forward to see what God will do. God does not despise honest how-questions; He meets them with clarity and kindness. You are invited to bring your impossibilities into that same conversation. Ask for light, not leverage; ask for sight, not a sign to control the outcome. [20:58]

Luke 1:34–35, 38: Mary wondered how such a birth could occur since she had not been with a man. The angel explained that the Holy Spirit would work within her and the power of the Most High would cover her, so the child would be holy and called the Son of God. Mary then offered herself as the Lord’s servant and agreed to His word.

Reflection: Where do you need to pivot from demanding certainty to asking God for understanding, and what single “how” prayer will you voice today?

Day 4: Nothing Is Impossible With God

Grace not only speaks; it often gives a sign we can visit. Elizabeth’s unexpected pregnancy became a living reminder that nothing is too hard for God. God knows our frame and offers confirmations that strengthen us without shaming us. Look for the “Elizabeths” in your life—people and providences that quietly affirm God’s work. Let their stories steady your steps as you walk into what seems impossible. [23:53]

Luke 1:36–37: The angel pointed to Mary’s relative Elizabeth—once known as barren—now six months pregnant, and declared that God’s word does not fail; with Him, nothing is impossible.

Reflection: Who could you reach out to this week as a living reminder of God’s faithfulness, and what is one practical step to seek that encouragement?

Day 5: Submission That Carries Christ Into the World

Calling herself the Lord’s bond servant led Mary into a costly path. She carried Christ amid suspicion, traveled without comfort, and delivered her firstborn in a stranger’s space because there was no room. Submission does not erase hardship, but it does welcome God’s presence into ordinary and difficult places. Your response will not change God’s plan, but it will shape your experience of it. Choose trust and faithful obedience, and watch the impossible quietly unfold. [28:32]

Luke 2:7: She gave birth to her first son, wrapped Him with care, and laid Him in a feeding trough, because the guest space had no place for them.

Reflection: What is one concrete act of obedience that may cost you comfort this week, and how will you prepare your heart to say, “Let it be,” in that specific place?

Sermon Summary

Luke tells the story of Gabriel stepping out of the throne room of God into a small hillside town called Nazareth—an unimportant place the world would not expect, to greet an unassuming young woman with an improbable word: “favored one.” Mary’s perplexity is understandable; favored was not how she would have introduced herself. Gabriel is not new to Scripture—he spoke to Daniel about God’s sweeping plan and, just before visiting Mary, to Zechariah in Jerusalem’s temple. That contrast matters: a veteran priest in the holy place, and a teenage girl in a backwater village, both visited by the same God with the same grace.

Zechariah’s moment came while offering incense—symbolizing Israel’s prayers—when Gabriel promised a son in his old age. His response, shaped by years of disappointment, was fear, and then a request for proof. Mary’s moment came with no request of her own, in the middle of an ordinary betrothal, and her response was not, “Prove it,” but, “How will this be?” Fear asks for guarantees; trust asks for understanding. And God is patient with both—He still gave Zechariah a sign and gave Mary clarity, even a sign she didn’t ask for: Elizabeth’s unexpected pregnancy. Then came the line that reverberates through the ages: “Nothing will be impossible with God.”

We also sat with the cost of Mary’s yes. Betrothal in her world already bound her to Joseph, so a pregnancy before the wedding would invite suspicion, jeopardize her future, and place her in a story she did not script. Her “Behold, the Lord’s bond servant” was not romantic language but a relinquishing of rights. That path led not to comfort but to a manger and no family nearby—yet through that costly obedience, God’s promise entered the world.

So what do we learn? God shows up where the world doesn’t expect and to people who don’t feel important. Our situation and past don’t have to dictate our response to grace. The plan of God stands, but our response shapes our experience of it. When we answer grace with submission, trust, and faith, we make room for the impossible to unfold—not because we are strong, but because the God who names our barriers is not bound by them.

Key Takeaways

1. Grace greets the unnoticed and unsure When God calls someone “favored,” it often lands on ears accustomed to being overlooked. Mary’s perplexity reveals how grace collides with our formed identities and expectations. Let grace re-narrate who you are before you try to perform for it. Receive the name God gives, not the one your town or history permits. [03:40]
2. Fear demands proof; faith asks how Zechariah sought a sign; Mary sought understanding. One posture tries to control risk; the other opens space for God to act beyond our grasp. Faith is not gullibility—it is consent to God’s method. Ask “how” to join His wisdom rather than “prove it” to manage His power. [19:42]
3. Place and past don’t limit grace God met a priest in the holy place and a teenager in Nazareth—the geography of encounter is God’s to choose. Your circumstance, age, or résumé neither qualifies nor disqualifies you. Grace is not merit-based; it is mission-based. Expect God to step into unlikely places with unearned favor. [11:44]
4. Submission makes room for the impossible “Behold, the Lord’s bond servant” is the doorway through which impossibility walks. Surrender isn’t passivity; it is an aligning of our agency with God’s initiative. When we yield our rights and outcomes, we find God is already moving the barriers we feared. Nothing is impossible with Him. [22:21]
5. Our response shapes our experience God fulfilled His plan with both Mary and Zechariah, but their journeys differed. The way we respond—fearful control or trusting consent—colors the terrain we must walk. You cannot derail God’s purposes, but you can either resist them or travel with Him. Choose trust to travel light. [30:08]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[01:29] - Who is Gabriel?
[03:40] - Mary’s perplexity at “favored one”
[05:07] - Zechariah after 400 years of silence
[06:35] - Priesthood and incense in the temple
[08:26] - Gabriel appears; fear grips Zechariah
[10:10] - Two responses to grace contrasted
[13:23] - Gabriel announces Jesus’ identity
[14:45] - Betrothal customs and Mary’s context
[19:42] - Mary’s question: “How will this be?”
[22:21] - “Nothing is impossible with God”
[23:53] - Mary’s surrender: “bond servant”
[27:26] - Birth in a manger: costly obedience
[30:08] - How our response changes the process

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading

- Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Observation questions

In Luke 1:26-38, what specific titles and promises are given about Jesus (name, identity, throne, kingdom)? How many can the group list from verses 31-33? [13:23]
Compare the two questions: “How will I know this?” (Zechariah) and “How will this be?” (Mary). What different posture does each question reveal in the text? [19:42]
What sign did Gabriel give Mary, and why is it significant that she had not asked for a sign? [22:21]
What did “betrothed” mean in Mary and Joseph’s world, and why would a pregnancy at that moment invite suspicion? [14:45]

Interpretation questions

Mary was “very perplexed” by the greeting, “favored one.” What does her perplexity suggest about how grace meets people who don’t see themselves as important? [03:40]
What is the spiritual difference between fear demanding proof and trust asking for understanding? How might those two postures shape a person’s journey differently? [19:42]
When Mary says, “Behold, the Lord’s bond servant,” what does that teach about surrendering rights and outcomes to God’s initiative? [23:53]
“Nothing will be impossible with God.” How should that claim reshape the way a believer names and navigates barriers in front of them? [22:21]

Application questions

If God greeted you, “favored one,” where would your heart resist that name? What would it look like this week to let grace re-narrate who you are before you try to perform? [03:40]
Where are you asking God for proof before you move? Rewrite one “prove it” prayer into a “how will this be?” prayer, and share one step you’ll take in trust. [17:36]
Identify one unlikely place in your life (work desk, kitchen table, hospital room) where you rarely expect God to show up. How will you practice expectancy there this week? [11:44]
What is one right, preference, or outcome you’re clinging to that you could lay down as a “bond servant” today? What concrete action would reflect that surrender? [25:01]
Name one barrier you believe stands in the way (age, past failure, limited resources, reputation). If you lived as if “nothing is impossible with God,” what would you do differently tomorrow? [28:32]
Like Mary going to Elizabeth, who is a trusted person you can visit or call for confirmation, prayer, or accountability? Make a simple plan and share it with the group. [26:12]
Consider a step of obedience that might be costly to your comfort or reputation. What support do you need from this group to walk that path in faith? [27:26]

Sermon Clips

and so this is my encouragement for you all today for all of us for the coming year for now for the rest of your life God is offering today his grace I'm not worthy of it we're not worthy of it he is coming and saying oh favored one my response to that is perplexed confused I am not the favored one that you're speaking to we're not worthy of it this is a grace we've not earned and so if it's a grace we've not earned how do we respond to the grace of God [00:29:06] (56 seconds) #GraceUnearnedRespond

the way we respond changes the process and my encouragement is to respond with full submission with trust and with faith and allow the impossible to unfold there are no barriers for God he made those barriers he is the creator behind those barriers that we see so they're not barriers for him he can move any barrier aside and bring across his plan [00:30:27] (38 seconds) #NoBarriersForGod

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Allow the Impossible to Unfold | December 21, 2025