When In Doubt, How Do You Believe?

I like to read back over the Christmas story as we get closer to Christmas. I also like to dig into it and see how I can take the lessons I find and apply them to my life and business today. For that reason, I want to focus on how we can believe more like Mary and less like Zechariah.

First Christmas Story

If you want to go back to the original Christmas story in Luke, you really need to start with the birth of John the Baptist. We read all about this in Luke 1:5-25 and 57-80.

We are told that Zechariah and Elizabeth are married and both are advanced in years. An angel named Gabriel appears to Zechariah to tell him that Elizabeth will become pregnant and bear a son. The son, to be named John, will be special, “great in the sight of the Lord” (Luke 1:15).

Excited Or In Doubt?

Now, if this was me in Zechariah’s place, I believe I would be excited! Not only would I be thrilled about having a son, but seeing an angel actually appear before me to tell me about it would knock me off my feet as well!

But because Elizabeth is unable to have children, Zechariah is immediately stumped. I am not sure, but I can even imagine him laughing a little! He asks Gabriel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

To Believe Or Not?

On the surface, there does not appear to be anything wrong with the question. Any of us can see ourselves asking the very same question if we were in Zechariah’s shoes (or sandals!). I know I can!

The problem is that there was something wrong with the question. While Zechariah did not say he did not believe, his heart made it clear that he did not believe. As a result, Gabriel sentenced him to silence (no ability to speak) until the day John was born.

What About Mary?

Before we go any further with Zechariah, let’s take a look at a very similar set of circumstances with Mary (Luke 1:26-56).

Mary and Joseph were engaged to be married. She was likely a teenager and was a virgin. Gabriel appeared to her as well and told her that she was going to have a son to be named Jesus. He would be great as well, and would be called, “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32).

Similar Question

Much like Zechariah, Mary then asked a question of Gabriel. “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” Again, on the surface, this question looked similar to the one Zechariah asked. Clearly, we would question Gabriel in the same way, right?

Instead of reacting with Mary the way he did with Zechariah, Gabriel went on to explain. He told her that the Holy Spirit would come over her and she would then give birth to the “Son of God.”

What Is The Difference?

Now think about that a minute. Mary questioned Gabriel in a similar way to Zechariah. Rather than punishing her with silence, Gabriel simply continued by answering her question. Why the difference?

I think we all realize that Gabriel saw Mary’s question as different than Zechariah’s question. Mary’s heart showed that she could believe what Gabriel was telling here while Zechariah showed doubt.

What we cannot discern simply by looking at the words on the page was clear to Gabriel. While we see no specific evidence of God’s instruction to Gabriel regarding the reaction by Zechariah or Mary, we can assume he was within his instructions to punish Zechariah for his failure to believe.

What About You?

I encourage you to ponder the comparison between the two situations. Ask yourself how you would have responded in their places. Would you believe what you were being told (like Mary) or would you have shown doubt (like Zechariah)?

As you think about these things, try to apply this same idea to the way you operate your business. Are you more like Mary or Zechariah? Do you believe or doubt – and what does that equate to in your results?

In my next post, I will dig a little deeper into this and see if I can come up with some examples to think about. I really believe there is a lot of meat here for us to digest. I pray you will see the same thing.

Do you see how much these two mindsets can impact your business?

When in doubt, how do you believe?

What needs to change for you to believe like Mary?

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