When God Makes the Impossible Possible

“For nothing will be impossible with God.”

Luke 1:37 ESV

My leg muscles burned more intensely on the last two steps. After walking up three flights of stairs with bags of groceries strapped across each shoulder, I breathed a sigh of relief as I turned around to look at where I had come from––literally and figuratively. God had surely made the impossible possible.

If I had been told in years past that one day, I would live in a third-floor apartment and easily take the stairs to reach it, I would have said that’s impossible. For years, chronic illness kept me homebound and dependent on others to complete basic tasks like grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning. The couch was the cocoon that held my body full of pain and weighed down in fatigue.

Although we may face situations that seem impossible, the Bible is clear that our God is a God who can bring about great things from impossible situations. In Genesis, ninety-year-old Sarah, laughed when she overheard the angel tell Abraham that she would conceive and bear a son. The angel’s response was, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” ~ Gen. 18:14 ESV

While journeying through the wilderness, the Israelites complained to Moses about their meatless diet. The manna had flowed consistently, but they had had enough of God’s suggested provision and wanted to see meat on the menu. Moses goes to the Lord, and God decides that He would give them what they asked for, in excess. 

Moses, in essence, asked the Lord if He really knew how many companions there were in his party––600,000? Besides the fact that they were roaming through a desert? Herds of cows, flocks of chickens, and a sea packed with salmon were nowhere to be found. 

And the Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord's hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not” (Num. 11:23 ESV). His Word did come to pass, as it always does.

Then there’s the angel’s announcement of the birth of Jesus to Mary––a virgin teen who would carry and bear the Son of God. Along with Mary’s impossible-turned-possible news, her cousin Elizabeth, once barren, was carrying a son––John. The angel’s declaration echoes in my heart: “For nothing will be impossible with God.”

The list of impossible-turned-possible situations found in Scripture is too long to pen here. But these examples serve to strengthen our faith, encourage our hearts, and stir determination to hold on to our God of hope no matter how great the trial, or how impossible our current need is.

Friend, I’m not sure what impossible circumstance looms over your life today. Maybe it’s a financial burden, an illness, an unsaved loved one, a broken relationship, or a broken heart. Whatever it is, be assured that the same God who planted life in Sarah’s, Mary’s, and Elizabeth’s wombs can breathe new life into your barren places. And the same God whose Word came to pass for the Israelites in the desert will come through for you. He is our God of the impossible!

Prayer

Lord, sometimes it’s hard to believe that the difficult situations will change when day after day it remains the same. Help me know that You are working even when I can’t see it or feel it. I trust You to bring the answer in Your time, Your way, and by Your power. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Ponder

But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” ~ Matthew 19:26 ESV  

What impossible situation do you face today? How does seeing God bigger than the circumstance encourage your faith to hold on to the hope that it will become possible in Him?