There are so many miracles in this Sunday's text from Luke 1:5-25. There's the appearance of Gabriel, there's the miraculous conception of John in the womb of Elizabeth. But I think that the most significant of this miracles might be the silencing of Zechariah.
He had gone through so much life- praying prayers, and never seeing them answered. He had grown tired, and he had grown uncertain that God really does answer prayer. You can see this reflected in his question to God's representative- Gabriel. He asks: "How can I be certain?" That's when God silences Zechariah. For nine months. So that he could watch his wife's womb grow with life. So that he could get quiet with the truth that God answers prayer, and that God keeps his promises.
Let's get quiet like that this Christmas. Quiet with God's promises. Quiet as we see life, and hope growing.
