But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. – Luke 1:7

Today's Scripture Reading (November 26, 2023): Luke 1

When we read in the Bible about someone being barren, the palpable problem for the people of that day was an issue of remembrance and being remembered in two ways. God had not remembered them because they had not been given children. But not only that, without children, there would be no one to recall them in the future. No one would be left to tell the stories and to love them after they were gone. In the ancient world, without children, it was as if you came and left without making a mark on the world with your existence.

To a certain extent, it is still that way. It was a huge issue for my grandfather that someone would be left to carry on the Mullen name. Now, it wasn't that there would be no more Mullens in the world if his line failed to produce men, but it wouldn't be his section of the Mullen lineage. He had done his part. Grandpa had two children, and both were boys, my Dad and Uncle Wally. But then the problem arose. My Uncle had two children, but both were girls. My Dad had two children, one boy (me) and one girl. So, as my wife and I started a family, we had a cheering section: my grandpa, hoping we had a boy so that the name would be carried forward and remembered for at least one more generation. It wasn't that he didn't love his girls because he most definitely did. But he wanted the line to carry on with his name. When our son, Craig, was born, we specifically gave him a name that honored my grandfather. And so, we gave him the middle name Hallett. Hallett is my grandfather's middle name, DeVerne Hallett Mullen, and it is also my great-grandfather's name; he was Rev. Hallett Smith Mullen. All of this is just one way of saying that we remember.

I have traced the family line back through some intriguing people. And for some of them, I even know their stories. These people include a man family historians have called Poughkeepsie Pete, A Dutch Ship Captain who retired and moved to the new world in the 1600s, and even a Captain of the King's Guard at the Palace of Westminster during the reign of King Edward III of England. And I try to remember to tell their stories whenever I can.

It is something that we all want: to be remembered. But because Elizabeth was barren, it was something that she and Zechariah would never experience. Their lives would not be extended through the generations. No one would fondly look back at their lives and say, "I am related to them." No one would speak their names or try to imagine and remember their lives, all because God had forgotten them, and so would the rest of the world. Zechariah and Elizabeth were destined to make no difference in their world because they had no children. From now on, all they might be is names on a dusty list indicating those who had served in the Temple. Because God had forgotten them, no one else would be given an opportunity to remember them and the things that they had done.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Matthew 1