“What, then, will this child be?” Every parent has probably repeated this verse at some point in their child’s life. Our hopes and aspirations come to the forefront of our minds as we wonder what might become of a son or daughter coming into this world. We might hope that our children will feel deeply loved or will have the opportunity to fulfill their dreams, or they will walk in the way of faith. I know these are things that we hoped for our children. But what were the hopes of Zechariah and Elizabeth? Today we read that Elizabeth, the wife of Zechariah, is about to give birth to a son. They had been blessed to know that they would have a son, what his name would be, and what his life would be dedicated to. Of course, when Zechariah heard this from the angel Gabriel, he was in disbelief. Wouldn’t you be just as doubtful? My wife and I were happy that our children came out healthy with ten fingers and ten toes. But our lesson today is, like Zechariah, who was in disbelief of what Gabriel was telling him, we can also be confronted with teachings we do not like, or have our hearts tugged by the spirit to step out in faith, or for deeper conversion on something God wants us to do. We must remember this lesson from Zechariah’s encounter and know that God accomplishes His will in any way he chooses. As His children, ours is to be obedient to his call, to quiet our hearts, and then to ask him to help us understand more fully the reality he wants us to enter into. Like Zechariah, we have been promised that the Lord will bless our trust and obedience when we step out in faith.