"And Zechariah said tot he angel, 'How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.' And the angel answered him, 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.' "
Being unable to speak was the result of Zechariah not believing the words of Gabriel- a messenger from the Almighty God. After reading this, I wondered what the result is in our own lives when we don't believe something God says to us. I mean, come on- Zechariah had an angel appear to him and he still didn't believe what he had to say! Verse 11 says it "troubled" him and "fear fell upon him", and then the angel Gabriel said, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard..." The angel 1) appeared to him in the holy place; 2) knew his name and 3) told Zechariah not only that his prayer had been heard, but recapped the prayer request made to God- of Elizabeth having a son. WOULDN'T YOU BELIEVE WHATEVER THIS GUY HAD TO SAY AT THIS POINT? Apparently not! Zechariah was still in disbelief because he and Elizabeth were old. Didn't he recall at that moment how Sarai (wife of Abram) (aka Sarah & Abraham) in the Old Testament bore a son whose name became Isaac? Did Zechariah forget how mighty God is and how all impossible things are not impossible with Him?
[Breathe.] My fear in all this is what we lose when we don't believe the words of God- whether it be words the Spirit speaks to you personally or words straight from Scripture that we don't believe, so we don't obey. Zechariah lost his speaking ability and more than likely his hearing ability. What do we lose? Do I believe people today are physically affected because of unbelief? I'm not sure. But something that I wouldn't want to lose out on, is the blessings and opportunities that come from belief and obedience! I don't want to look back in the past one day and say and think, I wonder what I missed out on because I didn't obey God at that time..." Instead, I want to live in those blessings and opportunities! I believe that's why following Jesus and obeying Him is so satisfying. Jesus fills you with Himself, which in itself is completely overwhelming- but then in addition to that you get the joy of His blessings. How sweet it is!
One of the most crucial times (and really, the first time) I believed God was when I was dating a guy before my current husband. I thought this guy was it, my future husband. At the time I was blinded by how unhealthy the relationship was and how ungodly it was too. In the moment, I thought it was love. When God told me He had better plans for me, it crushed my heart, but gave me hope and freedom at the same time. My emotions, my mind, everything I was- was attached and even lost to this one person. Knowing I wouldn't be with him anymore was freeing because I'd get myself back, whoever that was. The day God spoke loudly to me at Bible College about breaking up with this boy, was the day I made the phone call to do it. I tell you, to this day, it still was one of the hardest things I had to do- but it was also one of the best things I did too. I believed God, in that He had better plans for me, and I obeyed God, in breaking up with the guy. Two weeks later, I met Joey, who is now my husband, who fears Jesus and loves me in a way I would've never known had I not obeyed God. To read more detail about this testimony go to My Transformation.
Do any of you want to share in the comments below how you have or have not believed God and what resulted from it?
~Leanne~
[Breathe.] My fear in all this is what we lose when we don't believe the words of God- whether it be words the Spirit speaks to you personally or words straight from Scripture that we don't believe, so we don't obey. Zechariah lost his speaking ability and more than likely his hearing ability. What do we lose? Do I believe people today are physically affected because of unbelief? I'm not sure. But something that I wouldn't want to lose out on, is the blessings and opportunities that come from belief and obedience! I don't want to look back in the past one day and say and think, I wonder what I missed out on because I didn't obey God at that time..." Instead, I want to live in those blessings and opportunities! I believe that's why following Jesus and obeying Him is so satisfying. Jesus fills you with Himself, which in itself is completely overwhelming- but then in addition to that you get the joy of His blessings. How sweet it is!
One of the most crucial times (and really, the first time) I believed God was when I was dating a guy before my current husband. I thought this guy was it, my future husband. At the time I was blinded by how unhealthy the relationship was and how ungodly it was too. In the moment, I thought it was love. When God told me He had better plans for me, it crushed my heart, but gave me hope and freedom at the same time. My emotions, my mind, everything I was- was attached and even lost to this one person. Knowing I wouldn't be with him anymore was freeing because I'd get myself back, whoever that was. The day God spoke loudly to me at Bible College about breaking up with this boy, was the day I made the phone call to do it. I tell you, to this day, it still was one of the hardest things I had to do- but it was also one of the best things I did too. I believed God, in that He had better plans for me, and I obeyed God, in breaking up with the guy. Two weeks later, I met Joey, who is now my husband, who fears Jesus and loves me in a way I would've never known had I not obeyed God. To read more detail about this testimony go to My Transformation.
Do any of you want to share in the comments below how you have or have not believed God and what resulted from it?
~Leanne~
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