God's Sovereign Timetable

The subject of God's timetable and that God is always in control in  my life has always been a hard pill to swallow. It is hard to see that God has his hand in  one's life especially when times are the hardest. When we are sick, or in lots of pain, or lack of money seems to occur all too often, we wonder where is God in all of this? Then we are reminded through most of the stories in the Bible  that God is in control of all of our circumstances and nothing slips by him without his consent , even in the hardest of times. Although from our perspective it looks like God is far from us, or at times it may seem that God doesn't even love us,but that is only because we are too short sighted to see the bigger picture, and so it all comes down to trusting that God knows what he is doing. God knows the best time to allow whatever we need into our lives and we can trust that this is so, which is one of the messages of the timing of the birth of Christ and all the circumstances that surrounded that  great event.
On the Eve of Christmas here is a devotional that reminds us that God is always in control .
May you all have a blessed Christmas.

GOD'S  SOVEREIGN TIMETABLE



"In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone went to his own town to register."
--Luke 2:1,3
Unpleasant circumstances often have a way of being the best part of God's most magnificent design. Performing their civic duty under the census posed a great inconvenience to Mary and Joseph.

The distance between Nazareth and Bethlehem was no short hike over sixty miles of rugged terrain. Despite Joseph's attempts to make the trip comfortable, it must have been extremely difficult for Mary, into her ninth month of pregnancy, to make the three-day journey. But God decreed to have His Son born in the City of David, and He used an external circumstance-the census-to get the Holy Family from point A to point B. Despite the headache and hardship, God's sovereign timetable was ticking off right on schedule.

Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that only the right things, the comfortable things, are a part of God's design. A good job, an adequate home, and money in the bank give us the impression that we must be doing something right. Then when inconvenience or hardship hits, we wonder what went wrong.

Maybe nothing has gone wrong. Maybe we just need to realize that our most unpleasant circumstances, much like Mary and Joseph's, often have a way of being the best part of God's most magnificent design. God's sovereign timetable is working in the life of your family, too.
O, help me to see, Lord, that every unpleasant circumstance in my life is, indeed, part of Your wonderful design for my life. I thank You for the example of Joseph and Mary, who did not complain over the inconvenience of a census, a rough road, a cold night, or a crowded inn.

Blessings,
Joni and Friends

http://www.joniandfriends.org/