Real Hope: Christmas StoryÖrnek

## Unexpected, But Not Unplanned If you were planning the birth of Jesus, it’d probably unfold a bit differently from what we see in Luke. Given the significance of Jesus arriving into the world, you’d think it’d come about in smooth fashion with all the elements clearly lined up and ready to go. Mary and Joseph would be in the comfort of their own home surrounded by supportive villagers, Jesus would have a proper cot, and friends would attend to Mary in the days that followed. What really happened though, was quite different: Mary and Joseph are hustling to get to Bethlehem because of a mandatory census. She’s on the verge of popping and there’s nowhere appropriate for Jesus to be born. It would’ve been stressful, inconvenient and not at all what they had in mind. And yet, we know it was all perfect in God’s eyes. Sometimes being in the right place at the right time for what God’s intended for our lives is like that, I think. Our plans are messed with, we’re hot and bothered and yet there He is, bringing things together in a bigger picture we don’t yet see. When things seem messy and out of order, are we able to say, ‘Lord, I trust you with this day’ and believe that He’ll bring the pieces together as needed? #### Written by LAURA BENNETT