Another trip cancelled due to travel restrictions, another gathering changed to a Zoom call to be safe, another text sent out because someone was exposed to someone with COVID and we need to be careful. Life since March of 2020 has felt like a series of getting our hopes up again and again, only to be disappointed and stressed. Many global workers have had to leave the field or be stuck in their field far away from their families. How can we even think about growth in a season such as this, where merely staying healthy and afloat feels like an accomplishment and goal? If God truly wants us to grow, why would He allow such pain and why would He stop so many plans? 

The passage we’re looking at today is a very familiar one, one you probably have heard or often read over the Christmas season. Today, let’s look at it from a different perspective. We can get so used to the fact that Jesus was born as a baby that it doesn’t faze us, but let’s stop and think about it. Having the Messiah come as a baby was not the most efficient way to save humanity. God could easily have had Christ come as a warrior, ready to save His people and save ‘em quick. If Jesus was going to come as a baby, He could have been born into a royal household, or at least a household more prominent so that His Gospel would be more easily and efficiently spread. However, God chose to use two young people in the middle of nowhere to further His plan to save humanity. If that doesn’t stop us in our tracks, maybe we’re not thinking about it in a realistic way. I mean, why would God use a scandalous scenario (Mary being unmarried and pregnant) to initiate His incarnation? 

God chooses to use the seemingly dead-ends and the cul-de-sacs to cultivate the growth of His Kingdom. As I sit at my kitchen table writing these words, wherever you sit reading them, know that God has purpose and a plan–even in these crazy times. He chose to use a scandalous situation involving two nobodies to facilitate the incarnation. His thoughts and ways are not our own, but are greater and will accomplish His purposes without a doubt (Isaiah 55:8-11).

So take a deep breath and rest as we realize together that God has growth for us even in a cul-de-sac season. Just because the world is going crazy doesn’t mean that our God has left the throne. Just as God used the seemingly small and confusing situation of Mary and Joseph to bring His Light into the world, He can accomplish His purposes through whatever He brings our way today. Let’s prepare our hearts for Him to guide them into the growth that only He can lead and nurture us in.