Worshiping Witnesses

     Elizabeth and Zechariah are given the gift of a child in their old age. Anna and Simeon are given the gift of witnessing the Messiah in theirs. They are devout. They have been waiting. In fact, Simeon knows in his heart he will not die before seeing the king of Israel.

     Unstoppable praise came from the lips of Mary and from Zechariah as they witnessed the wonders of God. Today we walk with Mary and Joseph with the new baby, Jesus, to the temple. There is more praise to come.

(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord.) Luke 2:23

          Simeon sees the child. This child. THE child.

Simeon took him in his arms and praised God saying, “Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You may now dismiss Your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared in the sight of all nations, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”  Luke 2:28-32

     Joseph and Mary marveled at his words. Simeon witnessed the baby and worshiped. And there is another at the temple. A woman named Anna. She prays at the temple night and day. She became a widow at a very young age, after being married for only seven years. She is now eighty-four.

Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. Luke 2:38

     Anna and Simeon, aged and devout, written about in the Holy Scriptures. They recognized the Lord. Will you? When you see Him, will you praise Him from your heart and will you, like Anna, tell others about Him? If you believe in Jesus, your name is written in the Book of Life and, like Simeon, one day we will be dismissed in peace.

     Beautiful words of praise. I hear them every Tuesday morning. I facilitate a Bible study with some amazing women. I love these women. Some of them are in their seventies and eighties. Every week we begin with Scripture (many times a Psalm) and we praise God together. And almost every single week, a phrase or Word brings to mind a song. These beautiful women, many of them, have been praising Jesus for five or six decades. Spontaneous worship. It stirs my heart and Paul reminds us that this is what we are to do:

…speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:19-20

Dear Jesus,

The longer we know You, the more we want to praise You. Thank you for the witnesses surrounding us. Thank you for Your children, willing to share the news and to worship you with boldness. Let that be me.

Amen