Speechless
Rarely in my lifetime have I ever found myself 'speechless'. Let's just say I was very zealous with my gift of gab when I was younger. I'd say that talking is my superpower but superpowers shouldn't get you into trouble and I have definitely talked myself into some tight places on occasion.
The day I accepted a job in radio I called to tell my Dad and...after pausing a moment...this is what my Dad exclaimed: "I cannot believe you found someone to pay you to talk!!" To which I responded quickly, "Thank you! for letting me practice on you all these years!"
Zechariah was a priest who had been selected to go into the temple and burn incense. I'm sure he used his voice often to pray and share the scriptures. The day Zechariah entered the holy place to light the candles the angel Gabriel appeared to him. He told Zechariah that his prayer had been heard and that the child he and Elizabeth had prayed for would soon be on his way. Zechariah was instructed that his son would be called John, what his child would do and even who he would become! And yet, Zechariah struggled to believe. And so the angel Gabriel told him this: "you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words." Luke 1:20 (ESV). Speechless..until the baby was born! Tradition would say the baby would be named after his daddy. But when Zechariah wrote it down - his name is JOHN - the Bible says his lips were loosed.
I have always looked at this story from the perspective that Zechariah was being punished for not believing. But what if the angel rendered him silent to protect the blessing that God was about to bestow on them? Our words have power. What we speak can be a blessing or a curse. Sometimes what God allows in our lives isn't a punishment. It really could be for our protection.
Read more devotions written by Denise Harper at Treasured Inside
https://deniseharper.blog
