Welcome back to the blog, friends, and welcome to the new Christmas series! I spent a long time praying and thinking over this series and how to make meaningful content to encourage you in your faith and remind us of the true meaning of Christmas, and honestly, I wrestled with it. I actually began a series for this season and had to pivot because there's so much I want to share with you and I want it to be so led by the Spirit.
Which is kind of the journey that led me to this series. It's a simple, three week series over 3 reminders that the Christmas story encourages us with and that applies to our each and every day life. I'm really excited because the Lord reminds me that the birth of Jesus is not just for December or a small part of the year, but for every day, and there's so much truth that the Father wants us to carry with us throughout our daily life.
Today, for the first post in the series, the reminder from the Christmas story that I want to talk through with you is that the Lord can use anyone, even the most broken and messy stories, in big, big ways - even in ways that transform the course of eternity.
The Lord can use anyone, even the most broken and messy stories, in big, big ways - even in ways that transform the course of eternity.
I love studying the specific people that are so crucial in the Christmas story, and I don't have enough time in this post to dive deep into each person. But it amazes me every single time how God uses so many people with different backgrounds, different sins, different strengths and different struggles, all to contribute to the birth of His perfect son. God invited so many people to be a part of the entrance of Jesus into the world, no matter what society thought of them or if they felt worthy of that blessing.
God included many women as ancestors of Jesus Christ, who were prostitutes and adulterers and lonely and ashamed. He invited them to be the building blocks to Jesus' family, and He used their small steps of obedience to make a big impact in the plan of eternity.
God included a teenage girl, who was judged but walked in mighty faith, who trusted without question that God would take care of her despite the many unknowns in her situation. She worshipped and praised the Lord despite the emotion pulling at her heart, and she ended up being the woman who helped raise the son of God.
God included a honorable man, who walked according to Scripture and wanted to honor his wife and his God, even when he felt hurt and confused at the giant plot twist thrown at him. He sought God in the midst of his questions and trusted that the Lord would take care of him, walking in obedience and serving his wife, and becoming the man who helped raise the son of God.
God included the Magi, a group of extremely wise yet pagan men who were just following a star and searching for the Savior, and who humbly approached Him with gifts and joyful worship. They might have been considered crazy for the journey they went on, with the only guidance being a star, but they continued on, believing that there was purpose in the process and a prize at the end.
God included a lowly band of shepherds, who were looked down upon for the dirty work they did, but chose them to announce the birth of His son to, the first people ever to hear the news that the Messiah had arrived. He chose them to be the first to announce the good news and to worship among the angels.
And God includes you and I. Despite our past, despite out pain, despite the sin we feel stuck in, despite the depression and anxiety that weighs us down, despite how far we've been from Him lately, despite our loneliness, despite our uncertainty about the future, despite our questions and doubts, God has chosen you and is including you in His perfect plan for eternity,
So many Christians feel unqualified to be used by God, that their story is too broken to be made holy and used for good. We feel that without a major platform, without an abundance of wisdom, without having a special talent, we're just another drop in the ocean and surely we can't do anything big for the kingdom of God.
I'm here to tell you - and the Christmas story is here to tell you - that no matter how you feel, no matter what you're ashamed of, God can and WILL use it all for good. Your mistakes do not define you and they do not disqualify you. Our Father wants to use all types of people, with vastly different stories, to accomplish His plan. When you look at all of the people God chose to be part of the birth of His son, they all have flaws and struggles, but they were invited nonetheless to be part of an event that altered the course of history. They were ordinary people, just like you and I, but the way God used them was anything but ordinary, and that's what happens when you give God your step of obedience.
As I think about all the people involved in the Christmas story, I see one common denominator - steps of faith. Ruth, a great grandmother of Jesus, followed her mother in law and choose to serve her even when it meant leaving her own family. Mary and Joseph trusted that God would equip them and help them as they raised His son, even when it meant being ridiculed and judged by family and friends. The Magi followed the star, even if other people didn't understand, but their pursuit of the Messiah was more important. The shepherds were faithful to the job they had to do, and the Lord met them where they were at with the news, and then they were courageous to go share that news, even if they were questioned. Each person obeyed, in big ways and in small ways, and the Lord used that to bring His glory and the message of Jesus' birth to the world.
And that's all He asks of us, too. He doesn't want a resume or a list of accomplishments, but instead our heart of surrender and small steps of obedience and faith. He wants us to hold onto His hand and let Him lead us, following and trusting Him in the small ways and the big ways. When we do that, He will surely use our faithfulness in mighty ways - because He is a mighty God, and He loves His children.
This is the first post in the three part Christmas series, and I honestly feel so encouraged by the Lord. Our everyday "yeses" to God can make such an impact in the kingdom of God, and we are never too far gone to be used by Him. I'm so confident that the Lord has good plans for each of us and are going to use our story in such beautiful ways. And we can be reminded of all of this through the birth of Jesus! The Christmas story isn't just an event that happened a long time ago and isn't applicable today - it's most definitely applicable and we can learn so many things by looking at it with a little different angle.
I pray that this post was an encouragement to you and that the Lord blesses you this holiday season! What is the Lord teaching you right now? Is there any other Christmas content you'd like to see? Let me know down in the comments below!
