Miracle of Love: A 5-Day Devotional With Chris TomlinSample

Day 2: Unexpected Beginnings

“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 (NIV)

Jesus was born in a year when a census was being taken. That’s how he ended up being born in Bethlehem. That’s where his father, Joseph, was originally from. Interestingly enough, my daughter will be born at the end of 2020—also a year when a census was taken and one of the strangest years on record.

The arrival of Jesus was nothing short of strange. The long-awaited Messiah didn’t come to earth amidst fanfare. There was no parade in his honor, no paparazzi fighting to snap the first image of the newborn King.

Instead, he was born in a city that was barely a blip on the map. Bethlehem wasn’t known for much…yet. The local inn was full, so Joseph and Mary bunked with the animals out in a nearby stable. That night, their baby boy was born in a pile of hay. They wrapped him in scraps of cloth and made a bed for him in a feeding trough. It was a meager start to a meaningful life.

I wonder if Mary believed she held the Savior of the world in her arms that night as she clutched her infant. I’d like to think she instinctively knew this child was special from the start. The angel had hinted at His greatness, but I’m sure it was difficult for her to fully comprehend.

I wonder if Joseph realized he was locking eyes with royalty when he saw his son for the first time. I think as a dad, he probably imagined his child would go on to do something extraordinary; but he never could have fathomed the future ahead.

How could Mary and Joseph really have known everything their son would become? One thing’s for sure, they had a front-row seat to His extraordinary life that started on that cold, ordinary December night. 

A dirty stable. A tiny town. Less-than-ideal conditions.

Bethlehem was only the beginning. And while beginnings are significant, they don’t tell the whole story.

Surely you’d change some things / And the way that I was living / I hit my knees to pray / So grateful for new life —“Miracle of Love”