Sermon - Jeff Raines - Speechless Wonder [Luke 1:8-17]

How do you feel during a pause?  Do you always try to fill the silence?  What are we afraid of?  What do we think we will find in the silence? 

When Zechariah was told by the angel that Elizabeth would become pregnant, Zechariah's questioning unbelief resulted in his silence throughout the pregnancy.  

There are times when silent wonder is the best we can add to a moment.  There are moments where the truest response to God is not our self expression but our reverent attention to what God is doing.  Advent may be just such a time.  

Advent is about the coming of Christ.  We struggle with darkness, but as Frederick Buechner has said, "Advent is like the hush in the theater before the curtain rises."  

What does quiet bring to Zechariah?  

1 - Humility

In quiet, we stop injecting ourselves into every moment.  

2 - Attention (to God and other people) 

Zechariah is forced to listen during this season.  

Does our speech bless those who are closest to us or should we do more listening?  Maybe we need more silence and listening in this Advent season. 

Read about what Zechariah says when he regains his speech and reflect on it this week.  Advent invites us to pause and to sit in the stillness.  

What would it look like to practice silence before the Word of the Lord this week?