Manger Experiences

Luke 2:7

 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Joseph and Mary most likely presumed they would be staying in the inn.  They most surely did not plan on having their firstborn in a manger.  What they might have planned on experiencing that first Christmas did not come to pass due to circumstances beyond their control.  There were too many people and the rooms ran out.  When we approach our culture's Christmas celebration we, like Joseph and Mary, could very well have an idea of how things are supposed to go.  Chances are, circumstances beyond our control, could redirect our lives into our own 'manger' experiences.  We look at the precious manger scenes now with great fondness and romanticism.  What may have been an abrupt and unexpected turn of their lives appears to us as God's perfect plan that evokes greater meaning to Jesus' birth than if it had been in the inn.  Can we approach our Christmas season this way?  Are we open to things going in a completely different direction and trusting God is truly directing our paths?  Let us receive the challenge to learn from Joseph and Mary and go with the flow.  Let us take those 'manger' experiences this season and enjoy them, making the most memorable experiences from them.  Let's not be 'control freaks' having to have a room in the inn and demanding that our plans, however noble they are, have to come to pass.  Let us embrace the manger experiences and trust God to use them for His glory and our good.