Advent Week #4

Whaaaat?! Week Four?! Seriously! Only 16 more days until Christmas and that brings us to today's advent reading.
Luke 2: 1-16

Once again there is just SO much in this little passage that I don't know what to focus on, but I think this first bit is most relevant to me right now...

"So it came to pass..." This is you basic "story telling" phrase and since I've grown up with the "Luke 2 Christmas Story" my whole life I've always blown over these little details...but lets break it down now:

1. The ruler of the Roman Empire decides to do a census of EVERYONE in the Roman empire ( tons-o-people).
2. Israel is part of this empire.
3. This is the first time anyone's ever done such a thing ( a census of this magnitude.)
4. A little guy name Joseph lives in Nazareth but just so happens to belong to the family of David.
5. So even though he doesn't live there he heads to Bethlehem  to be counted.
6. His super pregnant fiancé goes with him.
7. She gives birth in Bethlehem. ( because I now know that this is nothing quite like riding on a donkey for hundreds of miles to induce labor.)
8. She's giving birth to Jesus.


Boom. The perfect example of how God controls things down to the DETAIL. Am I the only one that thinks it's mind blowing that God orchestrated Jesus' birth like that?

You see, if you read in the book of Micah ( in the Old Testament of the Bible) in chapter 5 verse 2, Micah the prophet, prophecies the following:
' But you, Bethlehem, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times."


And so, of course, Jesus needed to be born in Bethlehem and yet his mother-to-be was in Nazareth. People were not big travelers in those days, and pregnant woman were really not big travels. Yet, that was not a big deal for God. He just put some ideas into the current ruler of the World ( We're calling Roman that right now...) and things worked out perfectly.

You see, that's what I've been reminded of lately. My friend Miranda and her husband are moving to Hawaii and last minute all kinds of craziness came up, the week they were moving!! "How could this BE?!?!"
But then I was comforted by the knowledge that there is no small detail that is outside God's hands. He cares about us as much-or more so than his own son ( He loved us so much that He sacrificed His son for us.) 


I love how this amazing story of Jesus, the Son of God being born starts with the manipulation of a world leader and continues right on down to some Shepherds seeing right into Heaven and getting a direct invite to the Event that started the One Event that changed the World forever! Wow.
So, the next time I'm shaking my head over the current political climate ( WHO do we vote for come next November, huh?!?)  or wondering what in the WORLD the Army is going to next....then I'm going to remember the order that God found important. Shepherds first, then the wise men. ;-)

Which is coming up next week, if I'm not mistaken ;-)