Have you ever experienced a deep disappointment in your life? I’m not talking about a minor disappointment like your husband forgetting your anniversary or your wife making a salad for supper when you were expecting lamb chops (although that would be pretty disappointing). I mean a major disappointment like not getting the job you were hoping for or falling in love with someone who wasn’t in love with you.
By now, you surely know that life is filled with minor disappointments. We experience them on a daily basis: A coworker makes an unkind comment, a friend doesn’t follow through on a commitment, or a child refuses to cooperate.
But every once in a while, we are forced to endure a disappointment that shakes us to the very core of our soul—a disappointment that leads to disillusionment: Betrayal by a spouse, abandonment by a child, or shock from the unexpected death of a loved one! Have you ever dealt with a disappointment that caused you to doubt God’s power or his love?
A Divine Disappointment (5-7)
Today I would like to share with you the story of one of the deepest disappointments of my life. It’s a painful account of a broken expectation my wife and I experienced early in our marriage. For many years now, we have kept this part of our lives private. Although a few of you are already familiar with the story I’m about to tell, it will come as a surprise to the rest of you. Please know that I have her full permission to share it publicly. We’ve realized that our story might be helpful to others.
Our great disappointment came when we learned that we couldn’t have children of our own. I know this might sound shocking since we are now parents, but there was a time when we thought we would never feel the pride and joy of parenthood.
Even before we were married, we talked about having a large family. We dreamed about a big house with a band of boisterous baby boys bouncing off the walls. We went for long walks and prayed for God to fill our quiver with kids. We often recited Solomon’s words from Psalm 127: “Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.”
Needless to say, tried to have children as soon as we were married, and we thought she would get pregnant right away. After all, a number of our friends got pregnant within their first few months of marriage. But for us, months of waiting soon turned into years, and we still didn’t have a child. We didn’t know what to expect when we weren’t expecting. We eventually saw some doctors. I won’t go into the details, but it will suffice to say that they all determined that the womb was barren and there wasn’t anything that could be done about it.
I can’t even begin to describe the depth of our disappointment when we heard this horrible news. We wept for weeks; we mourned for many months! We couldn’t understand why a couple like us, who wanted children so badly, were unable to conceive, yet we knew other couples who didn’t even want children…well, I you know what I mean.
It just didn’t seem fair! We lived moral lives and took God’s commandments seriously. We read the Scriptures frequently—we prayed fervently—we served faithfully. My wife is the godliest woman I know, and I was already serving in ministry, leading people in worship and teaching them how to walk in the ways of the Lord. We were pious people who had devoted our lives to the Lord’s service. And we thought he was going to bless us with our heart’s deepest desire—a big happy family. But instead, we got a huge dose of disappointment.
You see, we weren’t just struggling with the disappointment of not having children, we were dealing with “divine disappointment”—disappointment that is directed toward God himself. We knew that God had the power to open the womb (like he did for Hannah in the Scriptures), but there was no sign that our situation was ever going to change. Although we continued to pray, God’s lips remained sealed.
Have you ever prayed for something, but God was silent? Have you ever expected that God was going to give you something, but then he didn’t? Have your dreams ever been devastated by “divine disappointment?” If so, perhaps the rest of our story will helpful you! It took many decades, but God eventually replaced our disappointment with delight!
Chosen by God (8-10)
Elizabeth and I lived out in the hill country of Judea. Since I was a priest in the line of Aaron and division of Abijah, I was required to make the journey to the big city of Jerusalem five times a year to take my turn serving in the temple. Three of these were during the major festivals (Passover, Weeks, and Tabernacles) as pilgrims swelled Jerusalem’s population and all priestly divisions served at the Temple. Each division had two other weeks a year when we carried out the daily sacrifices and rituals.
With approximately 18,000 priests in Judea, special duties were assigned by lot. Lots were sacred objects that would give a simple yes or no answer to questions; and a priest could only be chosen to enter the holy place and offer incense to the Lord once in a lifetime. Even after many years of faithful service, I had never been chosen for this honorable task. And if I’m completely honest, this misfortune added to my divine disappointment. But little did I know that when we cast lots this time, my number finally come up!
An Angelic Utterance (11-17)
When I entered the holy place to perform his duty, the other priests and worshipers gathered together outside to pray. As I began burning the incense inside, I experienced an alarming apparition. Through the hazy smoke, I saw the form of what appeared to be an angel standing on the right side of the altar. I felt the hair on the back of my neck rise and my pulse pounded with terror. But the angel spoke the comforting words “Do not be afraid!”
After I settled down a bit, the messenger told me that my prayer had been answered. “Which prayer?” I wondered?
Then he said, “Zechariah, your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.” I was stunned speechless! He continued, “You are going to be a father but your son will be no ordinary son. He will bring you great joy and many people will delight in his birth because he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is to live a strict lifestyle, never taking wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from birth. He will go before the Lord in the power of Elijah and will reunite families and bring many people back to the Lord. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord.”
The Silence of the Priest (18-22)
As I listened to the angelic utterance, I couldn’t believe what my ears were hearing. Were Elizabeth and I really going to have a son after all these years of hoping and waiting? As I tried to wrap my mind around this marvel, I let my tongue slip, “How is this possible? I’m an old man and my wife is an old woman!”
The angel raised its massive wings, drew near me like lightning, and spoke in a thundering voice, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and tell you this good news. And since you didn’t believe the Word of God, you will not be able to speak until the day of your son’s birth.”
For nine months, I wasn’t able to speak a single word. I imagine some women would love for God to strike their husbands with silence during their pregnancy! Husbands can say some pretty dumb things while their wives are pregnant. I suppose it’s better to be dumb than to say something dumb!
After Gabriel completed his mission, he gently flew up and vanished into the smoke rising over the altar. He departed as fast as he appeared, but I’ll never forget his words. I’ll always remember what he said about my son’s divine destiny: He would make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Although I knew I wouldn’t live long enough to see the day, I knew my son would be the forerunner of the Messiah! And I knew that God was about to do an amazing work on earth.
Just then, it dawned on me that I had been in the Holy Place for some time. The people outside were probably wondering what happened to me. So, I finished burning the incense and came out.
A Providential Pregnancy (23-25)
When I stepped through the curtains, everyone starred at me. I guess I looked like I’d just seen a…well, an angel. As I raised my hands to pronounce the benediction, my lips moved but no words came out of my mouth. And I remembered, “Right, I can’t talk. This silence thing is going to take some getting used to.” So, I came up with some clever sign language to explain what had happened. I’m still not sure if they ever figured out what I was trying to say.
After my duties at the temple were accomplished, I rushed home to share the good news with Elizabeth. That is where I really had some explaining to do! Can you imagine this dumb old man telling his old barren wife, “Hey honey, guess what, we’re are going to have a baby?”
But Gabriel’s words came true. Elizabeth did, in fact, become pregnant. I wanted to share the good news with the whole world, but remember, I couldn’t talk. Elizabeth felt differently about it. She wanted to keep the matter private. (I suppose if you got pregnant in your late eighties, you might want to remain in seclusion too!)
For five months, Elizabeth remained in seclusion. She wanted to wait until God was ready to make his plans known. She gave up an expectant mothers’ joy of sharing her news—to wait for God’s timing!
Well, there it is! Our story is now public—our incredible story of how an old peasant couple, who had been denied God’s blessing for most of our lives, was destined to be a part of God’s great plan of salvation history. We did realize it at the time, but God’s favor was with us all along. We were prohibited from having a baby when we were younger because God had a different plan for our lives; a better one. It was God’s plan for us to be the parents of John, the one who will one day prepare the way for the Messiah!
A few months after Elizabeth became pregnant, her young cousin Mary experienced a miraculous pregnancy as well. Perhaps I will tell you that immaculate story another time.
As for us, God replaced our divine disappointment with ultimate delight. Before I leave you today, allow me to highlight just a few lessons that I have learned through this amazing ordeal:
- First, I have learned that life is full of disappointments! There is little we can do to prevent these, but I am convinced that it is better to work through them quickly and stay focused on the tasks to which God calls us! Remaining frustrated or becoming bitter doesn’t help us; it only hurts us more!
- Second, I have learned that some of our deepest disappointments turn out to be some of God’s greatest blessings. Some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers! But we must be willing to trust him fully and wait for his timing patiently!
- Third, I have learned that we all play an intricate role in God’s redemptive plan for the world. Some people have major roles, and other people have minor roles, but uses every human life to accomplish his sovereign plan. Sometimes it is difficult for us to understand why things happen the way they do, but this is why we must put our faith in the Lord!
- Fourth, I learned that even good people need to rely on God. Just because someone lives a righteous life and does good, doesn’t mean that God is always going to give them what they want! We all need God’s grace, regardless of how good or bad we’ve been!
Now that I have my voice back, let me pray for you!