Today’s Passage: Micah 5:2-5a
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
Worthless. Useless. Too small. Not pretty enough. Not good enough. Most of us have been there. We have had times of doubt about whether we are needed or not. We’ve wondered if others know we exist. We may have even wondered if God knows we exist. Many struggle with self-doubt or loneliness. Some wrestle with darker forms like despair or depression. In these holiday times, it is especially easy to feel this way with parties and gifts and happiness all around. If Bethlehem were a person, no doubt it could have had the same feelings. It was a little town of no notoriety. Nothing big or exciting ever happened there. It was not even big enough to be considered among the clans of Judah. And yet God chose it to be the town in which the Savior of the world would be born. He chose it to be the birthplace of the “one who is to be ruler in Israel,” the Messiah (Micah 5:2). God had big plans for that little town.
We find throughout Scripture that this is how God works. He chose a shepherd named David to be king in Israel. He chose 12 disciples who were fisherman, tax collectors, etc. to spread the gospel far and wide. He used a little boy and his lunch to feed 5,000 people. He chose Paul who was a murderer and persecutor of the church to spread the gospel into the non-Jewish world. God used ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary tasks for His glory. Paul echoes this same idea in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29. God chooses lowly, weak, foolish, and hated things to bring about His purposes so that He alone gets the glory. Jesus came from a lowly town. He came from an ordinary family. His following and fame did not come about by His being born into an important family. It did not come about by His being born in a big city. The King of the universe was born in a barn in a tiny town.
In the midst of the season, rest in the comfort that God knows and loves you. He can do mighty things through you no matter how insignificant you may feel. If you follow Him and obey Him, He can use you to do big things for His kingdom and glory.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You that You know me and love me and have a plan for my life. In Jesus’s name, amen.