Silence is Golden Luke 1:18-20

“Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” 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. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because youdid not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”  (Luke 1:18-20) NIV

Random Thoughts:

Even “righteous” people have their moments of weakness. They have times of doubt about God’s ability even when God’s promises are coming from the mouth of an archangel.  

And while Zechariahs’s unbelief costs him a tongue-lashing--(no pun intended), God did not deny him the answer to his life-long prayer. He still gave him a son that set in motion the salvation of the world. God will do whatever it takes to work through us (yes, even our weakness) to accomplish his ultimate purposes. Even our moments of doubt are not enough to make him give up on us. Even more mercifully, He will do what it takes to restore our faith in Him. Zechariah wanted proof that he could believe Gabriel wasn’t kidding? He got proof.

Question:

Where do I struggle to trust God enough to obey Him? Have there been consequences that are helping me to head in the right direction?

Journal Response:

Money is a touchy issue. Especially when you aren’t that good with it. Over the years I have come to realize that my tendency to be impulsive and undisciplined has landed me in a heap of trouble. Of course I can justify a lot of it--medical bills for one. But no, I didn’t have to have those plants for my garden or countless other little things that as any good financial whiz will tell you, can add up quickly. 

But even I am not beyond getting the picture. Eventually. No, God did not send Gabriel himself to set me straight but He has spoken through others in recent years advising me to do the hard thing--get rid of credit cards, use cash only, write a budget and stick to it faithfully and SAY NO when the money isn’t there even when it really, really sounds like a good cause or a good idea.

And still I, like Zechariah, found myself looking into the eyes of my Christ-following advisors and thinking, “How can I be sure of this since, quite frankly, I think I just need to try to make more money....”  Really. I can handle it. 

So God in his mercy, let life hit me with a reality check. I lost my job. No money. Zero. Nada. Like Zecharias, my mouth was shut along with all my futile thinking that I could keep living on my own financial terms. Instead, I was forced with my back against a financial wall to see the error of my ways and the better ones He had been offering in answer to my prayers for financial rescue. Ah, silence is golden.

Amazingly, some months later, I am not only living on less than before but I am paying down my debts, I am living within my means and I am beginning to see that the light at the end of the tunnel isn’t an on-coming train. 

Gabriel wasn’t punishing Zechariah (as much as it certainly sounds like he was!). He was doing as he asked, showing him he could be sure that a God that powerful could also answer his prayer. Like Thomas who famously doubted Christ’s risen form in the flesh, God’s reaction is not to rail at us, throwing up his hands in disgust while He walks away. Christ did not reject Thomas; he showed him his wounds and invited him touch his sides. God knows there are those of us who need a little extra “convincing” and for us, that convincing may sometimes take the form of a tough consequence but it is never without purpose or without love. It is to provide what we need to set us straight and most importantly, to show us He can be trusted. His ways are not our ways--but oh how they should be.