Queue the Christmas music. I’m dreaming of a brown Christmas. Just like the ones I used to know. Where the tree tops glis…Wait! Brown?! Yes brown. Welcome to a West Texas Christmas.
Christmas Break is Here
It was an exciting day at our school. The last day of the semester before we took Christmas break; it was even a half day! All the kids were so excited. Everyone was having their class parties and celebrating the season. The morning actually started off warmer than the high was the previous day. What a great way to start the day! Well, if you live in West Texas or have ever visited then you know what I am talking about when I say “If you DON’T like the weather just wait 5 minutes – It will change! Only in this instance it was “If you LIKE the weather then
The weather changed from a beautiful day with nice mild temperatures to the wind blowing a million miles an hour. Here is the problem with strong winds in our area. When there has not been any moisture falling, it creates a nice dry ground. Well, since we are surrounded by forever flat nothing but farmland, the wind picks up the dirt and we have dirt storms. The sky turns brown and visibility drastically drops. If you have to actually get out in it, you are sandblasted and covered in dirt in just seconds.
Road Trip
This year in particular we were scheduled to walk out of the school building, straight to our vehicle, and hit the road. We were headed to my sister-in-law’s house to celebrate Christmas with my husband’s family. Of course this is when we would have a dirt storm! Why wouldn’t we have one then!? It makes for great traveling weather. As we were driving down the highway I was watching for tumbleweeds and debris. It was a moving obstacle course with the added challenge of not getting blown off the road. As I was looking into the brown sky I began singing, in my head, “I’m dreaming of a brown Christmas” while thinking it would be nice if it was really white. We don’t get many white Christmases around here.
Through the brown sky I could see that we were passing cotton fields. It was also stripping season. We began passing one field that had already been stripped and the cotton bales were all lined up. As we passed a couple of bales I realized that, for whatever reason, the farmer had not put tarps on any of the bales yet. The wind was strong enough that it was grabbing cotton off the tops of the bales and it was flying through the air. And there it was! I got my white Christmas after all. Was it what I was thinking about when I thought of a white Christmas – well, no! But, God has His own way of doing things.
Weather the Storm
This brought to mind a conversation I had with a dear friend earlier in the week. We were talking about this very thing – how God does not always answer our prayers the way we plan. We all have expectations or envision things a certain way. Sometimes we have a plan for what we want or have an idea of how we think God should answer our prayers or help “fix” a problem, BUT…this does not always work out the way we plan. Sometimes, God surprises us with a plan that totally changes the course of our day, year, or even life. God has His own plans of how He will help us navigate the seasons and weather the storms of our Brewing Ground. This is how he refines us through our Brewing Ground. And, He has a purpose and reason for doing things the way He does.
Humble Beginnings
Let’s think about Mary, Joseph, and the birth of Jesus for a minute. After all it is Christmas.
“7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” Luke 2:7 KJV
I can imagine it went something like this. Mary and Joseph are traveling. Mary tells Joseph the baby is coming. Thank goodness they are coming into a village. Joseph is frantically trying to find a room for them. There is nothing to be found. Knowing that time is running out, Joseph frantically prays for a place for them. He gets an answer to his prayer alright – a stable! I am sure that as he was walking up to the entrance he had a “human” moment and thought “Really? With the animals and poo – these aren’t very sanitary conditions? This is not quite what I had in mind God. Well, Ok!”
We now know that God had a purpose and plan for those humble beginnings. However, that may not have been what Mary and Joseph saw standing there at the entrance looking at the animals and smelling the air. But, they had faith in God and His plan!
Weathering Unexpected Answers
God is so creative! His plans are very organized, well thought out, and with every detail in place. And, His plans are always exactly what we REALLY need (even if we don’t think so). He is refining us as He is helping us weather the storms of our Brewing Ground. When you encounter a new season, stormy weather, or challenge will you trust God and His answers? Will you be flexible and use the stable or be open to whatever God plans? This requires an incredible amount of faith. Not knowing what the plan is or how it will turn out is challenging. Will you weather your storm in faith and be open to the unexpected answers to your prayers?
Merry Christmas! Let’s Brew in Faith!
Have you ever gotten an unexpected answer from God? Comment Below!
