“In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord. But they had no children…”
Luke 1:5-7a

Have you ever questioned God because of what you were going through? Many of us have endured some hard times and cried out to God. “How long?” we may ask. Perhaps we’ve said, “Why me, God? I am a good person. Why am I going through this hardship?” We can believe that who we are or what we do will prevent us from hardship. This is not what the Bible teaches.

Zechariah and Elizabeth made an extraordinary team in Luke 1. The Gospel of Luke regards some incredible words about them. Zechariah was a priest from the priestly order of Abijah. Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron, the brother of Moses and the first priest of Judaism. Luke says they were both righteous, words reserved for the likes of Noah and Abraham, and that they were blameless in their ability to follow God’s law. Their lives would have been examples of piety and devotion to everyone around them.

But…

You almost know it’s coming. Luke says all these good things about Zechariah and Elizabeth, BUT Elizabeth is barren. They were unable to have children. This would have been seen as divine judgment by their neighbors. I imagine Zechariah and Elizabeth spent years crying to God to give them a child. When the angel, Gabriel, told Zechariah that his wife would bear a child in her old age, Zechariah did not believe him. Zechariah and Elizabeth’s righteousness did not prevent them from experiencing hardship, doubt, and disbelief.

Perhaps we need to turn our “but” around (insert Middle School joke here).

Rather than focusing on the “injustice” of our hardship and asking God, “Why me,” we can see our hardship and say, “But God is with me.” We can experience the world’s trials and temptations and say, “But God is faithful.” We can walk through the valleys and proclaim, “But God is good.”

Zechariah and Elizabeth experienced a lifetime of loss, but God still heard their prayers because God was with them. God is with you today. Let’s turn our buts around!

God,
The human experience is filled with pain and loss,
But you are good.
We regularly fall short in our devotion to you and our love for others,
But you are faithful.
Too often, we turn our back on you and run the other way,
But you are with us.
Be near us today, and help us to focus our hearts on your faithfulness.
Amen.