…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 call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, or he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.  He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.  And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the

Luke 1: 13-20 (NIV)

If you’re a parent you know that children change your life and your perspective on life. No one is truly ready to be a parent—even those who long for one. But God uses children to accomplish his purposes in us and in the world.

Zechariah and Elizabeth had not been able to have children and were past child-bearing years. He was a priest who was very familiar with the history of Israel. He knew God provided Abraham with his promised baby when his wife, Sarah, was 90! But when God miraculously sent an angel to tell him that his prayers were finally answered and he was going to have a son, Zachariah doubted God.

So, with the greatest news spoken by an angel of the Lord who came directly from God’s presence, Zachariah was made mute—he couldn’t speak! He couldn’t tell Elizabeth she was going to finally have a son. He couldn’t tell the people he shepherded that the Holy Spirit of God would speak to them again! He couldn’t tell them God was preparing them for his coming!

God surprises us. He says to us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” (Isaiah 55:3) He surprised Zachariah and Elizabeth with a baby—the man who would be called John the Baptist. And John would make the people ready for the Lord.

This Christmas season, look for God to surprise you with his Son, Jesus Christ.