What do you do when your current circumstance display the impossibility of a future promise?
This is a valid question. We are faced with a garden variety of situations where our faith is challenged.
God said that He will provide but my mom’s hospital bill has now ballooned to 3M pesos.
God said that He is the Prince of Peace, but there’s so much conflict in our family today.
God said that if I believe, I will be saved together with my household. But my kids are in bad company and are not walking with God.
God said that He gives wisdom to those that ask, but I have messed up every time I got into a business endeavor.
Luke 1:5-25 narrates to us the story of Zechariah. The Bible says he was righteous, walked blamelessly and obeyed the commandments of the Lord. (1:6). But in spite of that, not every prayer item in their list had been checked off.
It is possible for one to live for God yet not have all his prayers answered. The goal is not the gift but the relationship with the Giver. Our relationship with the Giver is more important than the gift itself.
The Israelite nation hadn’t heard from God in 400 years. It’s been 4 centuries since God has spoken through a prophet. The last one was Malachi. But just because He is quiet, it doesn’t mean He has forgotten. He is faithful to fulfill His promises to His people.
Zechariah asked God how can they have a baby for they were in their old age. God was going to fulfill His promise. He will accomplish all that He said He would. It was just a matter of time. And He doesn’t necessarily reveal everything at one time.
There are things we don’t know, can’t know or won’t even know until the proper time. If God showed us everything He has planned in the next few decades, we might end up stressed, anxious or even fearful.
But at the end of his nine-month ordeal, he finally got it. God will accomplish what He wants to do. In the temple, Zechariah doubted. But after nine months, his faith grew and followed through with God’s instructions to call his son John though Jewish tradition dictated that the firstborn was to be named after his father.
Whatever failure we’ve made in the past, God can surely turn it around, covered by His grace. God can turn the marks of failure into memorials of grace.
As we continue with the Christmas celebrations this December, remember that God is faithful to keep His covenant promise even if we have been filled with unbelief.
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