Mensa Otabil - In the Right Place
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Luke 2:4-5. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. God uses places to link us to His purposes, and throughout the Bible, we see God moving people from one place to another to connect with their purposes or with an assignment that He has for them.
We look at how God asked Abraham to move from his fatherland to a land that would be shown to him. Later, we see the prophet Elijah instructed by the Lord to go to a widow in Zarephath to be fed, and we see Naomi and Ruth, who had to move from the land of Moab to the land of Bethlehem. Incidentally, the same land that Joseph and Mary went to, because Ruth is a distant ancestor of the Lord Jesus Christ. In this instance, God used the decree and tax policies enacted by Quirinius to get Joseph and Mary to the right place. The decree came at a very inconvenient time; it was the ninth month of Mary’s pregnancy. The distance from Nazareth to Bethlehem is about 140 kilometers.
Remember, there were no paved roads at that time; they had to go on foot or on a donkey, and the trek would take about a week or probably more. They would travel through flat lands and hills, where there would be lions and thieves who would rob people along the way. To think that at this inconvenient time, on this journey with a nine-month-pregnant woman, God had to send the right signals to move this family to the right place because nothing would have moved them except a very draconian decree from the Roman system. That tells you that God sometimes uses things we don’t like to get us where He wants us to be. Through many dangers and snares, God led the mother of Jesus and Joseph to the place where He wanted them to be.
On the journey, I’m sure there were many people who were also affected by the decree, and they were probably discussing the inconvenience of it. Maybe there were politicians who were very angry on the road. But for all the people on the road, this decree came because of one person: Jesus had to be born in Bethlehem. Putting politics aside, it’s God working out His purposes. God knows how to get us to the right place, and if you believe in the sovereignty of God and believe He has a purpose for you, then you don’t move from place to place just by yourself; you trust Him to order your steps.
Today, I pray that the Lord will order your steps as we approach the end of the year and in the coming year. May He put you in the right place; may He locate you where your prophetic destiny is. May He locate you where your assignment is, and when He puts you on that journey, may He give you the tenacity to stay the course and travel the journey to the place where God wants you to be. The Lord has a plan for you, and He has a place assigned for you also, and may you find it. Let’s share a word of prayer together. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, thank You for setting me in the right place. I accept Your purposes for my life. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.» May the purposes of God locate you wherever you are. Pastor Mensa Otabil, shalom, peace, and life to you.