We’re asking some tough questions this Christmas. We should not be afraid of questions. We invite them. We honor them. And we grow from them.

How can we grow from a question of trust? How can you believe better if you actually lean into the doubts you may have instead of just ignoring them? We’ll get to that.

The Christmas story actually begins with an angel. But not the one you’re thinking of, the one who appeared to Mary or the ones who appeared to the shepherds. This was an angel who appeared to an old man, Zechariah. A priest, working in the temple. Praying for a son in his old age.

And when the angel appeared, he said, “Great news! Your prayers are answered.”

Zechariah’s response? Doubt. Unbelief. “How can I be sure?” he wondered.

But the angel was right. And Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, was pregnant.

But the story doesn’t stop there! This boy would be named John. And he would not follow in his father’s footsteps. Instead, he would come before the footsteps of Jesus. He would lead the way.

You just have to walk over a couple chapters in Luke to find the story of John the Baptist. And it’s…a bit weird. He wore funny clothes. He ate funny food. And he had a funny way of showing his devotion to God. Instead of asking the people to follow the age-old traditions of temple sacrifices, just like his father, he invited them to be cleansed through a process called baptism.

That’s why he was called “John the Baptist” after all.

Now, his parents knew all of this before he grew up. Even before he was born! And we don’t know how much they shared with him, but I’m sure it was plenty. He had to have known that one day he would reveal to the world that his own cousin Jesus (yes, they were related) was the coming Messiah!

But it took a long time. At least thirty years.

And in that time, what was John doing? He was preparing the way. He was living in the desert. He was practicing the presence of God and learning the ways of a prophet.

Jesus? He was a carpenter. He followed his earthly father’s trade, we don’t know for how long. But he didn’t jump into the Rabbi business, into the teaching profession, into ministry right away.

I wonder how that affected John the Baptist?

Put yourself in his shoes. Your whole life you’re told that you’re special. That you’re on assignment from God. That you were born to your parents in their old age for a specific reason. You would usher in the Kingdom of God! What a great honor!

But not yet. You have to wait. And wait. And wait.

And wait.

For thirty years, you wait for Jesus to do something, anything!

At family gatherings, I bet he kept his eye on cousin Jesus. “He’s standing up. Is this it? Will he tell us that he’s the – no, just going to get more food.”

How many times did he doubt? How often did he wonder? How many prayers of his ended with “How can this be, God?”

But he persevered. He leaned into God. He trusted just in him.

Then one day, while he was baptizing people in the Jordan River, as one named “the Baptist” would obviously do, he looked up and saw his cousin.

He grabs a couple of his disciples. He points in Jesus’ direction. “Look! There he is! The lamb of God. Follow him and listen to what he has to say and obey every one of his words!!!”

After years and years of waiting and wondering, his mission came true. What was it that gave him the hope to hold on?

First, he trusted that God was good. He was good to his parents, after all. Even in their old age God gave them the desires of their heart, a baby boy.

Second, he trusted God’s character. Imagine how many nights he went to bed hearing his father repeated the Torah and his mother praying over him. He couldn’t get away from how good God was.

Finally, he trusted that God would do what is right. Those agonizing years of obscurity. The incredible decision to abandon the priesthood. He trusted that it was all part of God’s good plan for him.

What have you been hoping for so long that you’ve given up? You wonder if it will ever come true. Hold on! God is good, God’s character is great, and his plan for you is just right.