"So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David." (Luke 2:4)
It could have been called Anytown, because Bethlehem was like any town in the hills of Judea, except that the greatest king of Israel, David, was born there. And then, a thousand years later, the Messiah.
How does such honor come to the ordinary? Were the people of this town particularly worthy? Was there some great strategic advantage of where it lay? Were the people of Bethlehem politically savvy, having a long history of producing great leaders? Not at all. The little town of Bethlehem was in the shadow of great Jerusalem just six miles to the north. Even the meaning of Bethlehem, "house of bread," is unremarkable. What we know is that hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus the prophet Micah predicted the destiny of Anytown. "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 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 of old, from ancient times."
The townspeople of Bethlehem were surely proud to be the "town of David" and the home of his famous grandmother, Ruth. They must have been glad, too, that the tomb of Rachel, Jacob's beloved wife, was there. And they must have wondered what Micah's prophecy really meant. When would another prophet like Samuel come to town and anoint a new king just like he had done with the boy David?
But it didn't happen that way. On an ordinary day when men plied their trades and women baked bread and children played in the streets a traveling couple from Nazareth arrived looking for a room. They got no special treatment. No one offered their own room. Ordinary people were having an ordinary response to an ordinary looking couple.
Honor comes to the ordinary because of God's choice, whether it is God's choice to use a town, or a nation, or even a single man or woman, boy or girl. So if this is shaping up to be an ordinary day for you--be prepared. That's the stage on which the acts of God are played.
Prayer for Today: Dear God, it so easy for us to assume that nothing exciting will happen with the ordinary. Help us this Christmas to see the amazing things you do when you choose to use the ordinary.
thebrookletter@me.com
