God Willing

And the hand of the Lord was with him. – Luke 1:66b

God had already blessed John with the spirit of prophecy while still in his mother’s womb. And we will see that the hand of God never stopped blessing John’s ministry of pointing to Jesus as the Christ. The hand of the Lord was with him!

There is an old Latin saying – Deo volente. It is sometimes just marked as “D.V.” It means “God Willing.” The sense is that if someone has a desire to do something, and if it is in accordance with the will of God, it will come to pass.

I’ve heard a similar saying since I was a boy, “The good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise!” Which means that if it’s God’s will and nothing hinders our way.

But I think what was happening with John was even more powerful than either of these. It was not only God’s will but it was God’s actions that were promoting the prophetic ministry of John.

So the saying really should be –

“If the good Lord’s willing, then the creek WON’T rise!”

Or… If it does, God will provide a boat.