O Little Town

bigstock-Mary-And-Joseph-Nativity-Chris-53139316Bethlehem. Small. Little. Puny, even.

Country cousin to capital city Jerusalem.

A place one might travel through, but not stop and linger.

Yet God plants a clue in the “minor” book of Micah. When His Son steps from heaven to earth, His foot will touch Bethlehem first:

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. (Micah 5:2 ESV)

Bethlehem means house of bread. The house of bread housing the Bread of Life? Pun intended, God? Who would have thought?

Evidently—no one.

When the Magi came looking for the one born King of the Jews, Herod had to look it up. He sent the chief priests and teachers of the law on a Google search without the Google.

When they came back with, ta-da, Bethlehem, neither Herod nor the religious leaders bothered going.

Really? You’d think at least one scribe, dying of curiosity, would tail the Magi—or better yet, show them the way.

Nope.

Not even an intern.

Bethlehem was too little. Not worth the effort.

Have you been a Bethlehem? Put down, written off, or ignored? Too small? Too backward? Too—whatever?

Just remember. The Bread of Life was alive and well—in Bethlehem.

And if you know Him, His Spirit is alive and well in you also. There is no too small or too little in God’s book. God has a special place for the too _________________.(Fill in the blank.)

Just look at the Christmas story:

Bethlehem – too little

Shepherds – too blue collar

Mary – too young

Zechariah and Elizabeth – too old

Wise Men – too foreign

This Christmas, think about Bethlehem and celebrate the too ______________________.

Questions:

Do you wear a label of too something?

If so, who gave it to you?

Have you ever labeled someone else?

Do you think God agrees with the label?

How does God see you?

Is your heart a Bethlehem for the Bread of Life?

Tweetables:

Bethlehem: the house of bread. Pun intended, God? The house of bread hosting the Bread of Life? Gayle @gveitenheimer Click To Tweet
Have you been a Bethlehem? Put down, written off, or ignored? Too ______? Gayle @gveitenheimer Click To Tweet
Do you wear a label of too ________? Gayle @gveitenheimer Click To Tweet

1 Comment

  1. tomorrow we move to hawaii on April 26, 2014 at 3:57 am

    Wow, this post is fastidious, my younger sister is
    analyzing these things, so I am going to convey her.

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