Quite Unexpected!

When you ponder the birth of our Savior, it's really no wonder why the Jews have yet to believe that He has, in fact, already visited the earth. One would expect the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to be received with a little more pomp and circumstance than was actually the case, don't you think?

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, I don't imagine there were any signs like this one announcing their destination...



I don't think there were any street signs pointing to where He would first lay His head...



I imagine a weary Mama and her betrothed, sensing the time was upon them, found the least offensive place they could given their impending circumstances. I don't think it is what they imagined when they considered their sweet firstborn, the One Whom the angel had enlightened them about, making His appearance into their family and ultimately into the hearts of all who believed.

Reality is, our Savior was born in the most unlikely circumstances in the most unlikely place ~ a manger! Our nostalgic little nativity scenes don't quite do the moment justice, though, do they? This is what a manger in those days most probably looked like...



Not exactly plush accommodations, right? Maybe there was some hay in there to soften His initial resting place, but any way you look at it...a manger is not quite what we would expect.

He was conceived through the unexpected, birthed in a place that was unexpected, lived a life that was unexpected and died an unexpected death in a most unexpected way for Someone Who could change history with a simple verbal command. He certainly, even by the standards of those in His inner circle, did the unexpected when He rose from the dead and He continues to do the unexpected in my life day after day.

Lord, You have never been One to do what was expected of You. You never caved to public opinion or human expectations of what your birth, death and resurrection should look like. You continue to show up in unexpected ways and at unexpected times in the the lives of those Who seek You! Please continue to show Yourself to me in the most unlikely of circumstances at the most unlikely times, that I may never think I have you all figured out!