And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
Luke 1:34-35

Have you ever seen or heard a promise from God through His word, during a time in prayer, or through an encouraging word from someone else and thought, “well, how is that going to happen?!” When simultaneously looking at our current circumstances and a promise from God, we can see a gap that seems too big to fill. If we are not careful, our lack of ability to see a path from our current circumstance to the promise of God can cause us to believe that it will not happen.

Curiously, when the angel Gabriel came to Mary, her thought wasn’t to disbelieve that God was actually going to do something.* Her reaction did not include a disbelief in His desire or ability. Contrast, when Gabriel came to Zechariah about his miracle, he asked for proof from a place of disbelief (Luke 1:18).*

When God speaks to us about His plans for us, or when we read in His Word that He heals, provides, cares, and loves, we may find it hard to see the promise from our current vantage point. Mary had trouble seeing how she as a betrothed but unmarried virgin (her current situation) could conceive a son (the promise of what was to come).* Her inability to see did not convert to disbelief, however.

Mary’s answer was simple: “okay, got it. So how should I expect this to play out because I can see my current condition, and my current condition doesn’t align to the promise?”

God doesn’t ask us to have a faith that ignores our current circumstances, but He does ask us to have a faith that holds us close to Him and far from disbelief. Did God deliver on His promise though Zechariah struggled with disbelief? Yes. Did God deliver on His promise to Mary? Yes. Why? Because God promised, He will deliver.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to acknowledge the difficulty of the situation while acknowledging the truth of His promises. Perhaps today God wants you to know that He has a plan and a path. Maybe today God wants you to know that He is true to His Word.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.

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*Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke (Lk 1:29–38). InterVarsity Press.
Garland, D. E. (2012). Luke (pp. 81–82). Zondervan.
Edwards, J. R. (2015). The Gospel according to Luke (D. A. Carson, Ed.; pp. 48–49). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos.
Liefeld, W. L., & Pao, D. W. (2007). Luke. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Luke–Acts (Revised Edition) (Vol. 10, pp. 60–61). Zondervan.
Bock, D. L. (1996). Luke (p. 58). Zondervan Publishing House.
Bock, D. L. (1994). Luke: 1:1–9:50 (Vol. 1, pp. 118–122). Baker Academic.
Nolland, J. (1989). Luke 1:1–9:20 (Vol. 35A, pp. 52–56). Word, Incorporated.