Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent (December 19, 2017): Surprised by God

Today’s Readings:

Judges 13:2-7, 24-25a
Ps 71:3-4a, 5-6ab, 16-17
Luke 1:5-25
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/121917.cfm

USCCB Podcast of the Readings:
ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/17_12_19.mp3

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke. 

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.”

Good News Reflection:

In today’s Gospel reading, Zechariah, who is the husband of Mary’s cousin Elizabeth, receives a visit from the archangel Gabriel, the same angel who had spoken to Mary. Unlike Mary, Zechariah doesn’t believe the messenger. And he suffers the consequences of his disbelief.

When God sheds his light of truth on a situation in our lives, he usually reveals only the next step we should take. We’re on a long, important journey in an awesome plan of God, and because we cannot see the whole route, we doubt. We worry about what might go wrong. We analyze it logically and come up with reasons why it couldn’t possibly be the Lord’s will. Or we let previous hardships trigger emotional reactions that warn us to go no farther.

If we don’t know how to recognize what our spirit is telling us in its divine connection to the Holy Spirit, we won’t believe the truth even if comes to us in the form of an angel. This is why so many people fail to believe in the actual presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist or in the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. It’s not that they don’t want to believe — they just want it to make sense in their personal worldview. Their inner spirit is speaking a language that they don’t understand.

Zechariah said, “How shall I know this?” He wanted proof. Of course God can provide enough proof to convert the entire world, but then we’d have faith based on logic, not trust. Without trust, there is no desire to stretch our spiritual growth and perfect our dependence on God. Without trust, there’s no room for surprises. God enjoys surprising us! Surprises “prove” how awesome he is while delighting us with a divine form of entertainment.

The next time God sheds light on something that doesn’t make sense to you, instead of waiting for proof or an understandable explanation, tell yourself: “Oh yeah! A new surprise!” It’s like waking up on Christmas morning to discover gifts that you had not expected, gifts that are better than what you had hoped for or requested.

Whenever scriptures or Church teachings or a homily or a friend reveals something that we don’t like, it feels unpleasant, right? That’s because we don’t know how wonderfully awesome God’s plan truly is. In the darkness of our unknowing, we cannot see the wonderful surprise that awaits us. But when we extend to God our trust, we discover a hidden goodness. It’s like looking at Christmas gifts that are wrapped in the paper of unpaid bills. The paper is unpleasant, and we won’t discover the true gift inside until we look past it to see what God wants to give us.

And then guess what! More surprises! This gift is incomplete, because there are more surprises to unwrap, and Christmas morning lasts for a very long time.

Are we going to be like Zechariah, who was dissatisfied with the nonsensical gift that the angel gave him? Or will we choose to trust in the goodness of God and look forward to what he’s going to surprise us with next?

Trust is the midwife that enables us to give birth to Jesus in every situation.

Today’s Prayer:

Thank You Lord, for Your surprises in our lives! Sometimes they baffle us; sometimes they frighten us; but they always, always bring us closer to Your Heart. Amen.

© 2017 by Terry A. Modica

• Vatican
• HĐGM Việt Nam
• CSsR
• DCCT
• Nhà sách Đức Mẹ
• Đức Mẹ Hằng Cứu Giúp