Day 1: When God Interrupts Your Ordinary

Scripture: Luke 1:29–30

Mary wasn’t chasing a miracle. She wasn’t asking for a sign. She wasn’t standing around saying, “God, do something big with my life.” She was just living it.

And that’s usually how God shows up. Not when we’ve planned for Him, not when we feel spiritually ready, but right in the middle of the ordinary. Right in the routine. Right in the life that feels small and unspectacular.

Luke tells us Mary was “greatly troubled.” Which is the Bible’s way of saying she was rattled. Confused. Unsettled. Shaken to her core.

And here’s what’s so important: God doesn’t scold her for that. He doesn’t say, “Pull it together.” He doesn’t say, “If you had more faith, you wouldn’t feel this way.” He reassures her. Because being shaken isn’t the same as being faithless. And feeling confused doesn’t mean you’ve fallen out of God’s favor.

In fact, sometimes it’s the opposite.

God’s favor doesn’t mean your life will suddenly make sense. It doesn’t mean everything will line up neatly. It doesn’t mean the road ahead will be predictable. It means God will be present when it’s not.

And sometimes the impossible showing up in your life isn’t punishment. It’s not God being cruel.

It’s not God backing away.

Sometimes the impossible is an invitation. An invitation to trust Him in a deeper way. An invitation to see Him work where you never thought He would. An invitation to discover that God is still near, even when nothing feels normal anymore.

Application:

Today, name one place in your life where you feel “greatly troubled.” Don’t fix it. Don’t spiritualize it. Just acknowledge it before God.

Prayer:

God, I didn’t expect this. I don’t understand this. But I invite You into it. Help me trust that Your favor is still here, even when my peace is shaken. Amen.

Day 2: Asking How Is Not A Lack of Faith

Scripture: Luke 1:34

Mary doesn’t ask if God can do this. She asks how. And that matters more than we sometimes realize. Because there’s a difference between doubt that pushes God away, and questions that pull us closer.

This isn’t rejection. It’s wrestling. It’s a heart that’s still engaged. It’s faith that hasn’t shut down, even though it doesn’t understand yet. This is faith with questions, not faith without conviction.

And somewhere along the way, a lot of us were taught that strong faith means never asking anything.

Never hesitating. Never admitting confusion. But the Bible doesn’t agree with that.

Biblical faith doesn’t silence curiosity. It doesn’t pretend everything makes sense. It doesn’t fake certainty it doesn’t have.

Instead, it brings the questions into God’s presence. Because questions don’t hurt God. Silence does. Distance does.

God isn’t offended by honest questions. He’s not threatened by your “how.” He’s not rolling His eyes at your confusion. He’s invited into it.

And when you bring your questions to God instead of away from Him, you may not always get answers, but you will always get closer.

Application:

Write down the question you’ve been afraid to ask God. Then bring it to Him without editing, without cleaning it up.

Prayer:

God, here’s my real question. Not the polished one. Not the one I think I should ask. Meet me here. Help me trust You even when the answers are unclear. Amen.

Day 3: Trusting Presence When Answers Don’t Come

Scripture: Luke 1:37–38

Gabriel doesn’t hand Mary a step-by-step instruction manual. He doesn’t give her a flowchart or a timeline. He doesn’t answer all the questions she’s about to carry for the rest of her life.

He promises presence.

And Mary responds, not with perfect understanding. Not with a complete picture of how it’s all going to work out. She responds with surrender.

That’s devotion in the dark. Not denial. Not pretending everything is fine. Not blind faith that ignores reality. Open hands. That’s what it looks like.

Faith doesn’t always come with clarity. It doesn’t always give you peace about the details. It doesn’t always explain the “how” or the “when.” But it does always come with companionship.

God didn’t come to make Himself explainable. He came to make Himself trustworthy. He didn’t come to satisfy our need for answers. He came to satisfy our need for Himself.

And sometimes that’s exactly what devotion in the dark looks like: You don’t have all the pieces, you don’t know the plan, but you say, “God, I’ll follow You anyway… because You are with me.”

That’s the kind of faith that moves the heart of God.

That’s the kind of faith that changes everything.

Application:

Today, practice open-handed prayer. Sit quietly for one minute and pray: “God, I don’t know how… but I trust that You are with me.”

Prayer:

God, I release my need to control. I open my hands to Your presence. Let my trust grow, even when my understanding doesn’t. I believe You are near. Amen.

The impossible still interrupts the everyday. It doesn’t announce itself politely. It doesn’t wait for the right timing. It doesn’t check if you’re ready. And when it shows up, here’s the good news: you don’t have to have it all figured out.

You’re not expected to map out God’s plan. You’re not asked to explain Him. You don’t have to have the timeline, the method, or the “how” all sorted. You’re simply invited to trust Him.

Because trust isn’t about understanding. Trust is about surrender. Trust is about stepping forward when the answers aren’t there yet.

Sometimes, the most faithful prayer you can pray isn’t eloquent. It isn’t perfectly polished. It isn’t a checklist of spiritual platitudes.

Sometimes the most faithful prayer is a raw, honest, open-handed, open-hearted, “Okay, God… I don’t know how. But I’m willing to listen.”

And here’s the wild part: when you pray that, God shows up. He meets you in the unknown. He works in the gaps. He moves in the impossible.

Faith doesn’t need clarity. It just needs a willing heart. And that’s exactly what God can take and multiply in ways you could never imagine.