“Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.” – Luke 2:36-38
Anna steps onto the pages of Scripture quietly, yet her life speaks with a strength we desperately need today. Like Simeon, she shows us what it means to wait for Jesus with anticipation and to recognize Him the moment He appears. Her entire life was shaped by longing for the Messiah. Her name means “favor,” and though Scripture gives us only a few details, they speak volumes. She is called a prophetess—not necessarily one who foretold the future, but a woman who knew God’s Word so deeply that she could speak His truth with clarity. Widowed for decades, she refused to grow bitter. Instead, Luke tells us she “did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day” (Luke 2:37, NKJV). Her life was a steady flame of worship in a dark world.
Anna lived the very picture Paul later describes in 1 Timothy 5—a woman whose hope was fixed on God alone. She had no husband, no children mentioned, no earthly security, but she had the Lord. And because she walked so closely with Him, she recognized truth the moment it appeared. When Mary and Joseph entered the Temple carrying Jesus, Anna didn’t need an introduction or a sign. The same Spirit who guided Simeon guided her, and she knew instantly: the Messiah had come. It’s like the story of a man in New York who regained partial sight after decades of blindness. When he opened his eyes, he recognized his wife’s face—not because he had seen her before, but because he had known her so deeply for so long. That is what happened with Anna. Her spiritual sight was sharp because her heart had long been fixed on God.
And what did Anna do? She didn’t run to the religious elite or debate the scholars. She went straight to the hungry—those “who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.” She went to the seekers, the remnant, the ones whose hearts were already leaning toward God. She didn’t complicate the message. She simply pointed to Jesus.
Anna’s life reminds us that when we walk closely with God, we recognize His truth. When we anticipate His presence, we see Him clearly. And when we see Him clearly, we speak of Him boldly. May we cultivate the kind of nearness to God that sharpens our spiritual sight—so that when Jesus moves, we don’t miss Him. May we, like Anna, point hungry hearts to the only One who can redeem them.
“Abiding in Him brings the spiritual insight that recognizes His presence even when others do not see.” – Andrew Murray
surrendered devotions 