Have you ever carried something that you've been ashamed of? Maybe it was for months, or even years. It's hard to let go of shame. In some ways, it worms its way into our hearts and becomes part of our identity. We look at parts of our lives or things in the past with shame.
Elizabeth felt that way about her barrenness. It wasn't her fault, but she still carried it as a mark of shame. Here, in Luke 1, that reproach is taken away. God knew. God listened to her prayers, and God took away that shame.
We can look at Elizabeth and say that's great for her, but God hasn't taken away mine yet! But Elizabeth waited decades. She and Zechariah were old by the time this prayer was answered. Her prayer wasn't answered the first or fiftieth time it was prayed. There's no easy answer here, no guarantee as to when God will act. This isn't a formula where we simply plug in the right parts and wait for God to respond. God moves when God moves. But we can rest assured in the promise that God will remove all the shame and regret from our lives. Healing and grace will cover that, and we shall remember that pain no more.
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