DAY 4: Worth the Wait
BY: Kaylee Breker
“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. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
Luke 1:11-17
Do you remember how exciting Christmas was when you were a kid?
Back when you were doing none of the work, paying none of the bills, and you were simply free to enjoy the magic of the season? Everything was exciting! There were special treats, sparkly lights, special decorations and most exciting of all…presents! All that was left for you to do was wait.
Maybe things have changed and now you’re the one working to make the season magical for someone else but, I’ll bet one thing hasn’t changed for you….the wait. There are so many things in life that require us to wait, more than just Christmas. Waiting is such an integral part of our lives but, strangely, most of us haven’t gotten any better at it since childhood. I think many of us would agree, waiting is difficult.
In the opening chapter of Luke, we find a faithful couple who have patiently waited upon the Lord and are finally seeing their prayers answered. Zacharias and Elizabeth are an older couple who have lived their whole lives serving the Lord, but have one major heartache that they have carried their whole marriage, barrenness. This, in a culture that places high value on having children to carry on your family name, must have felt like a devastating blow. Remarkably, despite life having not turned out the way he would have hoped, we meet Zacharias doing what he has always done, serving the Lord, and that is where his prayers are answered.
Elizabeth and Zacharias did not let the disappointment of their lives harden them and cause them to turn away from the Lord, in fact it looks as though it had the opposite effect. They were committed to serving the Lord and waiting patiently for Him to orchestrate their lives however He wished. And when the Lord moved, He did so in a powerful way. Zacharias is the presence of the Lord, when an angel physically comes before him proclaiming what had to have been the most astounding message. Not only is God answering his greatest prayer in giving him a child, the life of this son will be used to prepare the way for the coming Savior.
This answer to prayer was woven into the greater story of what God was doing in the world. All of the hopeful waiting, the praying, the longing for God to intervene on their behalf is now worth it in this one moment where everything has changed.
I imagine that you are waiting on the Lord for something, most of us are. Be encouraged. It may be a shorter wait than you’re fearing, or you may truly be in for the long haul, like Zacharias.
Stay faithful.
Don’t give up.
Don’t let yourself settle into a heart of accepting that this is just how things will be.
Serve the Lord.
Be faithful to Him.
Spend time in His presence, for that is where we see our greatest desires met.
Do not grow weary in doing good, for at just the right time you will reap a harvest of righteousness. (Gal 6:9)
Often, when we finally see the answer to our prayers it’s connected to the greater story of God’s plan and to the story of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Daily Challenge:
How can you make room to spend time in His presence?
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