Hi, my name is Mick and with my wife Tricia we lead STC Sheffield – undoubtedly the best church community anywhere, but I am somewhat biased! We hope you are enjoying our daily podcasts and they helping you as a disciple as you daily journey with Jesus.

Two weeks ago Alan completed our reflections on the growth of the early Church in Acts; last week Bryony took us through reflections on Isaiah 9 as we began the season of Advent. Today we begin two weeks of podcasts looking again at the Christmas story in Luke’s gospel – the coming of Jesus into our world; then a short holiday break before we continue our podcasts in January. I am really excited about these next two weeks of podcasts as we have some fantastic guest speakers for you to listen to!

You will hear me today and on Friday then three members of the faculty of St Hild College whose Sheffield Barnabas Centre meets here every Monday on the STC campus. St Hild trains students in theology and church leadership – for more details check out their website sthild.org. On Tuesday you will hear Brian, Wednesday is Sally and on Thursday Mark the St Hild principal – an exciting week ahead! Each day there will be a focus on a particular verse or verses followed by a reflection and prayer, a worship song after which you can hear the full bible reading for the day.

REFLECTION

Today’s reading is Luke 1:26-38, the account of the angel’s visit to Mary. All this week and next you will hear through these podcasts a clear account of the birth of Jesus. This is the intention of the writer Luke; he says right at the beginning in chapter 1 v3&4:

With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

He tells the story of John the Baptist in the first part of chapter one, then on to the main event! In fact, over these next days we will hear again in these podcasts the main event of history, God coming to this earth as a baby.

There is so much in this reading to encourage us in our walk as disciples; in v31 -35 Luke sets out clearly a number of claims about Jesus. The angel says to Mary, ‘You are to call him Jesus’ (v.31). The name ‘Jesus’ means ‘saviour’. He is the long-awaited Messiah in the line of David. v31-32 and he is the ‘son of God’ v35 – Jesus is both fully human and fully God. All this in a tiny baby!

I have read these verses so many times over the years and always found great encouragement and challenge in them. As I read them with this Podcast in mind v37 stood out to me this time ‘for no word from God will ever fail’. You will see different translations of this verse in different bibles but the original text says this ‘for nothing will be impossible with God’ or even more specific ‘there are no impossibilities with God’.

What was about to happen to Mary was seemingly impossible – that why it’s called the immaculate conception! However, there are no impossibilities with God.

Do you need to hear that truth today; whatever you are facing, whatever challenges lay ahead of you – nothing is impossible with God. There have been many times in my life when I have had to rely on that truth that God can do it – many times for Tricia and I and our family; many times in Christian ministry when believing the truth that ‘for nothing will be impossible with God’ brought the breakthrough we needed. Do you need to hear that truth today with whatever you’re facing? Let it sink in to your very being as we hear again over these next days the Christmas story – ‘for no word from God will ever fail’.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you that in the coming of Jesus we see you promises becoming a reality – what you said would happen, did happen.