Timing is everything!

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Gal 4:4 “But when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth his Son...”

The holiday season that begins with Thanksgiving and continues through Christmas and New Year's Eve isn't an easy time for many people. Television shows, Christmas songs and commercial after commercial are about the joyous season. But it isn't all that joyous for everyone, is it?

There are some people whose marriages ended in divorce this year and others who have lost a loved one. Yet others have lost their jobs or received that frightening diagnosis from their doctors. I would guess that Christmas isn't feeling very "merry" to them. Sickness, financial problems, family problems, and every other life crisis you can think of…none of them take a vacation because it's Christmas.

The holidays tend to bring up memories from the past, hurts from the present, and fears for the future, don't they? And if you are facing some life crisis or there are broken relationships in your family, getting through the holidays can be like wading through quicksand. You might even be saying to yourself, “This isn’t what Christmas is supposed to be about!” And you’d be right.

That’s part of the problem, of course. The stores, the commercials, and even we ourselves seem to have forgotten what Christmas is really about. And while it is about the fact that Christ came, it isn’t only about that. It’s also about the timing of that coming. God sent His Son “when the fullness of time had come.” (Gal. 4:4) The NIV says it more clearly: “when the set time had fully come…”

I thought about that as a friend was sharing with me that she’s been praying for her prodigal for more than 40 years! She’s one of the strongest, most faithful Christians I’ve ever known, but she said she too sometimes struggles with the same fears and doubts and discouragement that the rest of us do. And how could she not?

I struggle sometimes too. But I draw great comfort from the fact that there was a set time for Jesus to come. He didn’t come one minute too soon or one minute too late. It was all part of the plan…a plan God had before He laid the foundations of the earth. A plan, according to Luke 2, that was going to be “good tidings of great joy” to all people.

God has a plan for your life and mine too. We might be asking, “Why this?” “Why me?” “Why now?” and we might not understand…indeed, how could we understand some of the terrible things that happen? I can’t explain them any more than you can. But I can assure you, on the authority of Scripture, that God means them for our good and His glory. (Rom 8:28)

What are you facing today? Is it a broken relationship with a loved one? A prodigal you haven’t heard from in years? A frightening diagnosis from your doctor? Whether it’s those things or something else entirely, the answer is the same. “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” (Luke 2:10)

Holding fast to God’s promise that He has a plan that will be accomplished “when the set time had fully come…” can give us the courage to hold on just for today. It might even give us back a little of our joy…even in the midst of our fear or heartbreak.

Challenge for Today: What might happen if we, just for today, reminded ourselves that God hasn’t forgotten or forsaken us but will meet our need “when the set time has come?”