We all have plans.
Plans for our lives.
Plans for today.
However, those plans always crash into reality. Mike Tyson, the champion boxer, famously said, "Everyone has a great plan until they get punched."
Our ideas of how we think things will play out often become the biggest obstacles in our path. In 2020, I've struggled to release my plans for how I thought this year was going to go. From plans to celebrate the wedding of friends in a beautiful location, to the projects I thought I could complete this year, my unmet expectations can make me very frustrated and frankly not very fun to be around.
The couple at the center of the Christmas story dealt with their plan colliding with God's plans and movement in their lives.
In Luke 1:26-38, Mary receives a visit from the angel Gabriel where she learns she will bear and give birth to the son of God. She hadn't planned to become pregnant nor give birth before she married Joseph. She initially was bewildered by how the plan of God would come about ("But how can this happen? I am a virgin.")
In Matthew 1:18-19, we learn that Joseph becomes aware of the pregnancy without knowing the story behind it. While preparing to divorce Mary quietly, he receives his visit from Gabriel. In Matthew 1:20-25, Joseph is encouraged to not be afraid to take Mary as his wife because this child is the work of God, not something shameful.
Initially, Mary and Joseph didn't have room for Jesus in their plans. Becoming parents, much less the earthly parents of Jesus, wasn't something they saw coming. Yet, we read in Luke 1 how Mary surrendered her plan for her life and embraced the opportunity to carry Jesus in her womb. We read in Matthew 1 how Joseph surrendered his desire to have the approval of people. Taking Mary as his wife, while she was pregnant during their engagement, would have likely raised the ire of their community, even disgracing them and their families.
Like us, Mary and Joseph could have felt out of control, uncomfortable, and afraid to let go of their plans and embrace God's invitation to a new and better story. In his famous book, A Hero with Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell writes, "We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us."
But what if we don't want to let go of the life we planned? What if we liked the life we planned? What if we're afraid that the life that is waiting, the life Jesus is offering us, is harder, more painful, and includes things we don't want?
These emotions and concerns are difficult to navigate. But it is through these emotions that we connect with the experience of Joseph and Mary. Here are three ways we can make room for Jesus as they did.
1. Trust that Jesus is working for our good.
Many of us know the words of Jeremiah 29:11. "'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'" However, those words mean so much more when we consider the context. Earlier in Jeremiah 29, the Lord informs the Jews living in Babylonian captivity that they will not be returning home anytime soon. Hearing that the Lord's plans were "for good" must have created dissonance in their hearts. Some might have thought, "Staying here doesn't feel like it's for our good."
Have you had a moment recently where it felt like God's plans were for "disaster?" Is it hard to believe Jesus is working for your good? We will resist surrendering our plans and future to Jesus until we trust Jesus is working for our good.
2. Regularly examine our plans to make sure we leave room for Jesus.
There is a highway I often travel to the airport closest to my home. This four-lane highway is notorious for accidents that create backups that last for hours. After sitting at a standstill on many occasions, our family always leaves room in our travel plans for accidents and delays.
However, I often get frustrated when Jesus delays my plans or detours my path to somewhere different. When was the last time you examined your plans to make room for Jesus? If the Bible is any indication, making room for Jesus means making flexible plans!
3. Sacrifice our sense of control and embrace a posture of surrender.
I love the feeling of being in control. But it's not a feeling I've had often lately. Maybe that's why a recent message from Pastor Craig Groeschel challenged me. He shared a powerful observation. "We don't always have the power to control, but we do always have the power to surrender."
In a year where it feels like everything has been messed up, some of us may be thinking "don't mess with my Christmas." We want to hold onto control when it comes to our holiday experience. But isn't making room for Jesus, ultimately an act of surrender? What if making room for Jesus means surrendering even our vision of what celebrating His birth looks like?
The Song "Make Room" has become an anthem for me this year. These powerful lyrics have reminded me what making room for Jesus looks and feels like.
"Here is where I lay it down
Every burden, every crown
This is my surrender...
Every lie and every doubt
This is my surrender
And I will make room for you
To do whatever you want to...
Jesus, Have your way, Jesus...
Your way is better."
RELATED STORY: “Make Room” by The Church Will Sing (Feat. Elyssa Smith & Community Music)
What if Jesus' way is better? What if His plans are better than our plans? What if Jesus does have a better idea of what is good for us?
We don't have the power to control our lives today. But we do have the power to surrender them and make room for Jesus this Christmas season.
Scott Savage is a pastor and a writer who believes he has the best last name ever. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona. Scott is married to Dani and they are the parents of three "little savages." He is the creator of the Free to Forgive course and you can read more of his writing at scottsavagelive.com
