Dec 19 2020 Reflection

Saturday 19 December 2020

First Reading: JGS 13:2-7, 24-25A
Responsorial Psalm:
My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!
PS 71:3-4A, 5-6AB, 16-17
Gospel Reading: LK 1:5-25

Today’s Note: Saturday of the Third Week of Advent

Gospel Reading:

In the days of Herod, King of Judea,
there was a priest named Zechariah
of the priestly division of Abijah;
his wife was from the daughters of Aaron,
and her name was Elizabeth. 
Both were righteous in the eyes of God,
observing all the commandments
and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. 
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:

Your prayer has been heard. (Luke 1:13)

American baseball player Yogi Berra once described back-to-back astounding plays as “déjà vu all over again.” Extraordinary, astonishing, and repeated—that sounds like today’s Gospel! At least three other times in Scripture, God promised a barren woman a son. Sarah, Manoah’s wife, and Hannah each saw that promise fulfilled, just as Elizabeth did (Genesis 18:10-14; Judges 13:2-7; 1 Samuel 1:1-20). It’s only natural to wonder why God did something so wonderful.

The simple answer is that God hears the prayers of his people. Every. Single. Prayer. He heard the longing in the hearts of Sarah, Manoah’s wife, and Elizabeth. He heard Hannah’s tearful pleas in the shrine at Shiloh, and he hears your prayers, spoken and unspoken. God is neither deaf nor indifferent. Let that be the starting point as you tell him what’s on your heart. Engrave it in your mind: When I pray, God hears.

Sometimes we ask, “Why is God taking so long to give me an answer?” But it’s more helpful to ask, “What does Scripture say about who God is, and how does that apply to my situation?” Today’s readings reveal that God cares about what is on your heart. He cared about Elizabeth’s longing for a child, and he cares about your longings. He was faithful to Elizabeth, and he is faithful to you. He always prepares the way for his works, even if that preparation takes years—or most of a lifetime, as it did with Elizabeth. Even if it takes until the day you see him face-to-face, he will answer you.

God is always faithful. He always hears you. He always cares. Make that your bedrock, your unshakable position of faith. When the prophet Habakkuk complained that God seemed neither to hear nor answer, the Lord replied that what he had planned would come to pass: “If it delays, wait for it, it will surely come” (2:3). Or as Yogi Berra once claimed about a hopeless-looking baseball season, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

“Father, help me to trust in your faithfulness and love.”