Luke 2:36-38

And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity; And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.  -Luke 2:36-38

A few years ago in church, I played Anna in our church Christmas play and ever since then, I can't help think about her.  There's an argument for someone who thinks the Bible is a dead book - I've read through the Bible entirely several times in my life, and there's always something that becomes new to me at some point in my life.  But, I digress.  Let's talk about Anna.  There's so few verses about what happened in the temple with Anna, that's there a lot you would have to surmise about her.  If you read any commentaries on these verses, everyone has their different theories about the importance of the different things that are said about her.  Here's what I get from these few verses though:  she was a woman who waited on the Lord.  At this point in history, it had been about 300 years since they had heard from God through a prophet, yet they called her a prophetess.  She had been widowed fairly early in life, at a time when she could have remarried and had children and gone on with her life.  But, she waited on God.  I would be willing to bet that when she got married, her dream wasn't to live alone in the temple for the rest of her life.  She put aside all of her hopes and dreams to wait on the Lord.  She didn't just wait, though.  She fasted and prayed, and not just at the appointed times when they were supposed to pray, but she prayed night and day. Then came the Hollywood ending:  all she had waited for, to see her Savior, came to fruition because of her faithfulness and she went out and told everyone about it.  So, what are you waiting for?  Are you being faithful in waiting on the Lord?  Are your hopes and dreams in the Lord?  Are you sharing what the Lord has done in your life with others?  I know I need to be more patient and wait on the Lord more.  I know I need to share with others more what the Lord has done in my life. I guess it's time.