GPS-Via Nazareth & Bethlehem

DEC 22 / Sunday – Read 1:26-38 / Isaiah 7:14 / John 1:46

Overview: The ordinary town of Nazareth. We trek here and take note of the surprising places and people God uses to bring about the miracle of Christmas. Then head to Bethlehem for the miracle.

23 / Mon – Nazareth  |  Read Luke 1:26-38 / Matt 1:20-24

Nazareth was a small town that seemed so unimportant it elicited this response in Jn 1:46. Yet it was the place God chose to first reveal His good news to a young engaged couple. Do you ever feel like you have to be an extraordinary person living in a big city to impact the world for Jesus? A look back in history shows how God has used the unexceptional to accomplish the amazing. And why? See 1 Cor 1:28-29. Are you available as Mary and Joseph were? Will you say yes as they did?

24 / Tue – Christmas Eve in Bethlehem  |  Read Luke 2:4-7

Nazareth is about 90 miles from Bethlehem. Back then it took four days. What an ill-timed trip.  Joseph may have had relatives in this small town but all the rooms were taken by the time they arrived. It seemed impossible yet God made a way. Have you ever felt there was no room for you? You didn’t know where to go or what to do. Maybe it wasn’t literally needing a place to sleep but you felt rejected by others or had a dire financial need or you had a broken family relationship. How did God make a way for you? And if He hasn’t yet, He will.

25 / Wed – Christmas morning  |  Read Luke 2:8-20

Have you ever had such an incredible experience that the next day you wondered if it was a dream? In 1st century Israel, shepherds had very low status. Living in the fields, they were unable to keep many of the Jewish laws and were considered unclean and outsiders. Yet shepherds were the first to be invited to meet Jesus the newborn Son of God. What does that tell you about how God thinks of those we may (sadly) consider as inferior to ourselves? Humbling, isn’t it?

26 / Thu – Pondering  |  Read Luke 2:19, 21

Mary had seen and heard and experienced some amazing things. She did not take them for granted but regarded them as treasures to be pondered. She knew the promises God had made over the centuries. She heard the angel’s words and saw them fulfilled, for Elizabeth and Zechariah, and herself. Now she saw the good news being announced to others. What promises has God given to you? Do you treasure them? Do you think about them often? Do you watch for them to come true? Who is more blessed than those who think deeply about what God has said!

27 / Fri – Confirmations  |  Read Luke 2:22-38

Jewish law required the first baby boy to be presented before the Lord 40 days after birth. Joseph and Mary were still in Bethlehem, just 5 miles from Jerusalem, so they took him to the temple there. Who did they encounter? What words did they hear? Looking back over this story, you can see how many times Jesus’ parents received confirmation that what they believed was true. When God says something, it will happen. Do you believe that?

28 / Sat – What now?  |  Read Prov 3:5-6 / Rom 12:12

In the Christmas story, is there one person you can relate to more than others? Mary or Joseph, feeling inadequate for what God has asked of you? The shepherds, going about normal life, not looking for God to do anything unusual? Simeon or Anna waiting and waiting to see God fulfill His promises? How do the examples of these ordinary people encourage you to experience your present circumstances with peace, regard the future with hope, and find your joy in the Lord?