When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child
she gave birth to a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard
that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,
and they rejoiced with her.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child,
they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,
but his mother said in reply,
“No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her,
“There is no one among your relatives who has this name.”
So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.
He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,”
and all were amazed.
Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed,
and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors,
and all these matters were discussed
throughout the hill country of Judea.
All who heard these things took them to heart, saying,
“What, then, will this child be?
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.”
We hear of the events that happened. … that when Zechariah wrote his message, telling them his name was John… and when he was able to speak again… fear possessed the neighbors and also that all the people discussed this miraculous event. What could this mean they asked. Surly, it was the hand of God. And they took it to heart. They wondered what John would be? Why was he born in this manner and what had happened to Zechariah?
They did not yet understand or tie it together with the prophecy of the forerunner coming before and clearing the way for the Messiah.
But those who listened to Jesus when he began his ministry would finally understand all.
For us, it is a matter of a history lesson, and we get to see the events from beginning to end and reflect on them.
How in awe were the people though. Possessed by fear and wondering and then realizing somehow this was God’s will and he had a plan. And they took it to heart.
God leads us down a similar journey from fear to wonder and eventually to taking our faith to heart.
One of the most often spoke phrases in scripture is “do not be afraid.”
Most folks live in some kind of fear today. Fear of failing. Fear of being unloved. Fear of losing a loved one or even our own life. We worry about our job and finances. We worry about our country and world.
But God’s answer is always the same, do not be afraid. Do not let anxiety possess you. Live focused in the now.
Yesterday is beyond us and so is tomorrow. But today we have to work with. So today we can pray more for graces and even pray for belief. The one who prays for faith with an open heart will receive it.
We will hav struggles in life and they will often times own us and leave us stressed and worrying, but we must always be like the folks in the Gospel… return to the heart. Open our hearts to the love of God and allow him to own our life. Lead us down our path. Ask God to turn your fears and anxiety into faith sand peace and joy. Then always strive to do his will and he will show you the way.
We are close to Christmas, and we should dedicate these last few days and give them to Jesus Christ. Give him everything and everyone. Ask God to own these days and restructure our actions to pray more go to adoration, if available. If not, just go sit in a church and be silent. You don’t have to talk… but be still and listen. Spend this last bit of Advent giving God free reign over us. Then on Christmas we will have made real progress in our faith and our prayers will be answered. What better gift to give Jesus on his birthday but our hearts. What better gift to give ourselves but a life with peace and joy and love. Ask for more faith for Christmas. That’s on the top of my Christmas list
Deacon Tony Pynes 
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