Keep the fire going

The Lord has taken away my disgrace at the right time.

5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7 But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.

8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.

11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.

... 18 Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

19 The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. 22 When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.

23 When his time of service was completed, he returned home. 24 After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. 25 “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”-Luke1:5-25

Some said that Zechariah cannot speak because he was greatly stupefied or shocked by the Angel Gabriel's presence. Others said that Zechariah became mute because he did not believe that - after a long time - his prayers were answered despite the impossibility of it. But with God, everything is possible. Even if God Himself personally gave this message to Zechariah, he wouldn't still believe. And this is why he was temporarily put to a state of silence until the time of its fulfillment.

We are all like Zechariah sometimes. We prayed for a long time for a promotion, for winning the lottery, for the return of a lost love, for a one-in-a-million break, and yet when it comes we cannot believe it or we bungle it. Perhaps our hearts turned cold because we have waited for so long. Perhaps by waiting for long a time, we lost the 'fire,' or the perseverance to keep on.

As the birth of the Lord Jesus comes, let not our hearts go weary. We continue persevering that our lives and the world will be better along with the reign of Jesus. We continue praying without ceasing for miracles in our life. And when it comes, are we ready for it?

Image courtesy: Domenico Ghirlandaio (Gabriel's Annunciation to Zechariah) and artist