Something amazing was happening in Nazareth. The angel first appeared to Zechariah, and now six months later, to Mary. Zechariah’s reaction was skepticism, but Mary’s was curiosity. “How can I be sure?” vs “How will this be?”
What would your reaction have been? Both times Gabriel began with “do not be afraid.” Both times they were told that God was with them – for Zechariah, it was that God had heard his prayer; for Mary, it was that she had found favor with God. God was going to bless them either way.
I teach ninth graders; the same age Mary would have been. These kids are still dreamers. They are convinced that with the right luck and hard work, they will become the next famous influencer or video game designer. They will be the one-in-a-million to make it big. We would be committing an anachronism to assume teenagers thought the same way they to today, but we can rightly assume that they did not have enough life experience yet to be jaded by the world.
Zechariah, on the other hand, had lived a full life. He had seen enough to have a realistic outlook. He knew he and his wife were too old to fulfill what the angel was telling him. He faced a consequence for his doubt, but even in that, his sudden silence screamed of God’s work.
So how can we recapture the curiosity of Mary? The first step is to notice God’s presence. See God in every sunrise, every sweet word, and every smile. See God everywhere. See His beauty and His kindness. He’s there if we look.