Different and Wonderful

 

“How can this be?” – Luke 1:34

They say that stress is caused when reality doesn’t line up with our expectations.

The loss of a loved one, an illness, any other hardship, or even the weather might be affecting your preparations and plans for Christmas this year. Maybe this Christmas feels different; it’s different from how you imagined it, and you don’t like it. You want the hurt to go away, you want to feel better, and you want things to go back to ‘normal.’

Mary was making plans to start her life with Joseph when the angel Gabriel came to her and everything changed. Giving her fiat to Gabriel meant letting go of her own plans and trusting God and His love for her. The reality of what her future held was different from what her expectations had been. She had to trust that God’s plan was still going to let them experience His love, joy, and peace.

God’s plan for you is to experience His love, joy, and peace, too.

“’For I know well the plans I have in mind for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for your welfare and not for woe, to give you a future of hope.’” –Jeremiah 29:11

What does this look like?

Christ shows His love for you in the kindness and comforting words of the people around you. If you didn’t get around to your usual baking, His joy will reach you when you appreciate simple Christmas chocolates or store-bought cookies. Whether they’re humble or elaborate, you can experience His joy through decorations, gifts exchanged, and meals shared. His peace will touch your heart when you cherish the time together with your loved ones, even if you’re missing someone.

Letting go of our expectations and adjusting our thinking to embrace what we have frees us to find Christ’s peace and even His joy in the new circumstances. This Christmas can be different and still be wonderful.

Jesus was born in a humble stall, shared with smelly animals. He slept in a manger – a food trough. No plush hotel, no clean medical facility, no crib with a soft mattress. He wanted to show us that none of those externals matter. What matters is that Christ is here with you and His love never changes.

Let go of your external expectations. Welcome Christ – welcome Love – into your heart. His Love is all around you.

Merry Christmas!

“Lord, let me seek out Your love, joy, and peace this Christmas.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome!

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Lessons of Humble Stables and Smelly Mangers

“She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” –Luke 2:7 

Imagine Mary and Joseph arriving in Bethlehem. They’re exhausted, Mary has gone into labor, and all the rooms in town are taken. Did they kick themselves for not getting there a day or two earlier? As they were turned away from one full inn after another, they certainly prayed, “God, help us find a place to stay!” Did they hope for a miraculous ‘last-minute cancellation’ that would give them a room? They trusted that God would provide for them; did they wonder why He didn’t intervene?

God, in His wisdom, wanted to use the circumstances of Jesus’ birth to teach us the holiness of humility. Jesus was born in a humble stable and laid in a smelly manger to unite Himself with the poorest of the poor, to prove that all people are precious to Him, regardless of their wealth or status. Mary and Joseph might not have realized this at the time, but they did trust that even the stable was part of God’s plan. Who knows? Maybe in Bethlehem there was another family praying desperately for lodging, and God’s plan was to let them experience the miracle of a ‘last-minute cancellation.’ Maybe their experience increased their faith in Him and brought them a joy they had never known before.

Have you ever asked God to help you, to take away a particular struggle, and you felt like He wasn’t listening because you didn’t see a change? Jesus’ birth in the stable shows us that, sometimes, God doesn’t intervene because He has a better plan. He knows the lessons He wants to teach us through our own ‘humble stables’ and ‘smelly mangers.’ Maybe one experience taught you that what needed to change wasn’t your situation but your attitude. Or maybe, when you trusted our Lord to provide for you and you followed the ‘gut feelings’ He gave you as to what steps to take next, you found a new course of action; maybe that experience took you on a path closer toward Him. Maybe you looked honestly at the messiness in your own heart and gained a new, humble perspective that softened how you relate to others.

The stable and manger became holy because the Son of God dwelt there. This Christmas, invite Jesus deeper into your heart. Let Him make holy the ‘humble stable’ of your day-to-day experience and the ‘smelly manger’ in your heart. Trust that He will use them to bring His Love, Peace, and Joy to the world.

Merry Christmas!

“Lord, come into my heart!” 

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Reasons to Hope

 

There’s more to love about autumn than the glowing Harvest Moon and maple leaves painting the landscape with reds and yellows. Autumn’s charm lies in its unique aura, a combination of contentment with the present, optimism for the future, and nostalgia for the past. We say goodbye to another short summer; we enjoy just-picked tomatoes and sweet corn; and we plant bulbs for next spring, and remember the ‘new beginning’ feeling with another school year starting. This looking-back-and-looking-ahead may stir in us some wonder about what’s in store for us as we near the end of another calendar year. The prophet Jeremiah reminds us that our future is in God’s hands:

“I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future filled with hope.” –Jeremiah 29:11

Maybe you’re an educator or a student and you’ve embarked on a new school year. God has plans for you to flourish. Take advantage of the opportunities that present themselves!

Maybe you’re looking for work or have recently changed jobs. God has plans for you to succeed with the particular talents He’s given you.

Maybe you’re dealing with health challenges, relationship difficulties, or some other burden. God has plans for you: These challenges may lead you to greater strength, insight, or holiness. Ask Him to wrap His peace around you and help you carry this cross.

Maybe nothing significant has changed for you recently and you’re left wondering if there’s anything good coming out of this monotony. God has plans for you, too. He’s your constant companion in your routine; your good work today will reap rewards later.

The Lord wants us to trust Him and His plans. Imagine Him saying to you, ‘You will thrive and prosper, and live in peace, if you strive to follow Me. You will work and you will speak, and some people will appreciate you and listen to you, and others will not. This is how it was with the prophets and with Me, so why should it be any different with you? Continue in your work. Do not lose heart. Do not get discouraged by any of your challenges. Do not abandon your work or give up just because you don’t see results. I am working in hearts; I am working where you cannot see. If you give up, then you give up on Me and I won’t be able to accomplish what I mean to accomplish through you. Persistence and cheerfulness will pay off.’

Our God, Who ordered the seasons of nature, has great plans for you! YOU are precious to Him!

 “Lord, I trust that my life has purpose. Because of You, I will look ahead with hope.”

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