TIME-TRAVELING TOURISTS

Micah 5:1-5
1 Marshal your troops, O city of troops, for a siege is laid against us. They will strike Israel's ruler on the cheek with a rod. 2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for Me One who will be Ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." 3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor gives birth and the rest of His brothers return to join the Israelites. 4 He will stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord His God. And they will live securely, for then His greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. 5 And He will be their peace.

Online travel sites are doing big business. Booking flights and hotels on the Web is fast, easy, and usually less expensive. Book an Alaskan cruise, Amazon adventure, African safari, or an Australian walkabout from your own computer. And if any of those travel sites ever figure out how to add a time-travel option, the tourism industry will never be the same!

Can you imagine traveling back to see real gladiators fight to the death? To ride the steppes with Attila the Hun? To witness the coronation of Queen Victoria? What about crossing the Red Sea with the Israelites? Helping to bring down the walls of Jericho? Or walking the streets of Bethlehem the night Peace came to earth in the form of a baby boy?

Without the birth of Jesus on its time-travel itinerary, Bethlehem probably wouldn't see too many time-traveling tourists. The virgin, the manger, the swaddling clothes, and the Incarnate Creator put Bethlehem on the map of history like nothing else ever could. But for people who knew prophecy, the Messiah's arrival was expected.
The prophet Micah shone a spotlight on Bethlehem when he wrote, "But you, Bethlehem . . . , out of you will come for Me One who will be Ruler over Israel . . . . He will stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord . . . . And He will be their peace" (5:2-5). This ancient travel ad pointed the way to a small town that would be the cradle of the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Take a trip to Bethlehem in your mind this Christmas. Read the accounts of Jesus' birth again, or maybe for the first time. Picture yourself with the shepherds as they received the heavenly message that the Messiah had come. Imagine what it would've been like around the manger that night--to gaze at the tiny Son of God. The Baby of Bethlehem was born for you. --Tracy Carbaugh

DESTINATION POINTS

* How do I plan to celebrate Jesus' birth this Christmas?
* What makes Jesus' birth important to me?

bottom line: Jesus stepped into time to give us hope.

soul journey