Zechariah 1

Luke 1:8-17

The other night at a gathering of people I was reminded of the first indications that I was being called into the ministry. Those incredible moments when God broke into my heart were not on a mountaintop or in a grand cathedral. They happened while I drove home from work or attended a small service at a local church.

God’s incredible presence can be found in the everyday occurrences of our lives.

How was it that Zechariah was in the temple? Who appears? What will happen with Elizabeth? What can Zechariah expect from his son?

This is the earliest beginning of the Christmas story. An angel appears to a man named Zechariah, a priest in the temple. The angel predicts the birth of a son to the priest, not the Messiah, but the one who would prepare the way for the Messiah.

The angel has some incredible information and incredible predictions for John. Verses 15-17 give us some profound statements about the child who would become John the Baptist.

What strikes me, however, is the “when” and “where” of the appearance of the angel. The angel appears in the temple, true, but not on a special holiday nor during some grand ceremony. Zechariah was going about his duties, a commonplace occurrence for him, when the angel announces such awe-inspiring news.

This was a message of earth-shattering importance, a message of hope for a people who had no hope. And the angel came during an average day in a familiar place.

But that is the story of Jesus Christ – a profound Savior who comes to the ordinary person. And that is the message of Christmas – a story of hope that breaks in to our everyday lives.

This Advent season, be a messenger of hope for other people, not in grand and elaborate ways, but in the everyday, common times of life. Tell others the story of Christ.

DAILY CHALLENGE: Find someone you see almost every day who needs to hear about Jesus and tell them about him.