But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren
and both were advanced in years.
Once when he was serving as priest
in his division's turn before God,
according to the practice of the priestly service,
he was chosen by lot
to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense.
Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside
at the hour of the incense offering,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him,
standing at the right of the altar of incense.
Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him.
But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah,
because your prayer has been heard.
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you shall name him John.
And you will have joy and gladness,
and many will rejoice at his birth,
for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.
He will drink neither wine nor strong drink.
He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb,
and he will turn many of the children of Israel
to the Lord their God.
He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah
to turn the hearts of fathers toward children
and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous,
to prepare a people fit for the Lord."
Then Zechariah said to the angel,
"How shall I know this?
For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years."
And the angel said to him in reply,
"I am Gabriel, who stand before God.
I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news.
But now you will be speechless and unable to talk
until the day these things take place,
because you did not believe my words,
which will be fulfilled at their proper time."
Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah
and were amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary.
But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them,
and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary.
He was gesturing to them but remained mute.
Then, when his days of ministry were completed, he went home.
After this time his wife Elizabeth conceived,
and she went into seclusion for five months, saying,
"So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit
to take away my disgrace before others."
REFLECTION
Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him.
Mary was fearful when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to her and announced she would conceive Jesus. She was "greatly troubled at his words" and the angel had to tell her "Do not be afraid, Mary." (Luke 1:29) Joseph was afraid and the angel appeared to him in a dream reassuring him, and now Zechariah also shows us how human these great people were.
Fear has held me back all throughout life. Fear of doing what should be done, fear of speaking up, fear of being hurt, fear of trusting in the Lord. Fear, however, has kept me out of trouble. Growing up, fear of hurting my parents played a big role. Therefore, I obeyed and followed their teachings and rules. Fear of doing harm helped me hone in on skills and discipline became part of me. Fear reminds one that we have limits and humility is needed to follow His call.
God is calling us all the time, but do we stop and listen or is a visit from the great Archangel Gabriel necessary to get our attention? God is continually moving in our lives and in reflecting our past, we see His hand in all things and see that He is in full control. No need to be afraid but in all things hand your worries to God and pray, letting Him take control, allowing Him to weave His designs. In God there is always hope.
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