Luke 1:11-13

“Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.”

I am so comforted by this passage. It reminds me today that God hears our prayers. I know that Zechariah and Elizabeth had been praying to God for a child for years, perhaps most of their lives. The previous verse tells us that he and Elizabeth were well along in years. They were old and had been praying the same pray for years. Yet, they continued to serve and worship God even when it seemed that their prayer would not be answered the way they hoped.

But, here in this passage we get a clear reminder from Gabriel that God has indeed heard their prayers. He gave them the wonderful news that they would have a son and his name would be John. Of course, God does not always answer our prayers in the way or timeframe that we want. I’m sure Zechariah and Elizabeth wished that God had already given them a child. Perhaps they thought that God’s answer was no.

Yet, they continued to pray and seek God with the desires of their hearts. They kept loving, praying, and worshiping God…no matter how long or what the answer would be to them. This challenges me in my own prayer life. It reminds me today to pray in faith. Not faith that requires that all things be answered my way in my time. But, faith that God hears every prayer that we pray. He will answer with what is BEST! I can trust that He hears me and that He is always working for good…and if I love Him and am called according to His purposes I will believe in His goodness no matter what His answer.

I hope today we can be more like this couple. I pray that we each will have faith that God DOES hear our prayers! That is amazing! If we truly believed that today…what would we pray to Him for in our lives? Step out in faith today knowing that God hears your prayers and is always working for good to those who love Him.