The Crazy Way He Came

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Hello Bravehearted Beauties! I’ve missed you! Happy second week of December! Good LORD! Help us slow this train down! I feel like Thanksgiving crashed right into Christmas, and I wasn’t ready. Anyone else feeling the holiday whiplash? I’ve joked that my house is suffering from a seasonal identity crisis {pumpkins and poinsettias on the porch}. And if I’m honest, my spirit is suffering a bit, too.

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But that’s okay. We weren’t meant to rush from one significant season to another with no time to process or recover in between. We weren’t meant to pull off a great Thanksgiving {or struggle our way through a difficult one} and then perk right up for Christmas. So leave your pumpkins on the porch if you’d like. No need to give into the pressure of Christmas if you’re not feeling it.

Christmas has always been my favorite time of year. I loved stretching the joy of the season out for as long as possible, hence a decade of designing Christmas cards from September through December! But this year, I just wasn’t ready to embrace the season. Until…I spent the day cleaning a dirty, dusty, stinky, poopy barn.

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Note: I’m pretty sure this will be an unconventional Christmas post. It’s not often that you find Jesus and poop in the same sentence! Truth be told, I didn’t call it “poop” while cleaning the barn. When it smells that bad, and you’re all up in it, you call it what it is! Shocking, I know. But so is the birth of a king in manger.

Have you ever cleaned a barn? Mucked a stall? Refreshed a coop? Shoveled through layers of poop? Me neither…until we chased a God-sized dream and moved to a small farm in Franklin. Our dream always included chickens, which turned into dogs to guard them, ducks for the pond, barn cats to control the mice, sheep for the pasture, turkeys for my husband, and a puppy for the girls. Do you know what all those animals mean? LOTS of poop. And a very messy barn! Gone are the days of family barn worship. The smell of sheep urine alone makes it hard to sing praise!

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Last week, on a dreary winter day, my husband and I decided it was time to clean the barn. {With so much to tend to here on the farm, we’re always behind. Whoever demands our attention gets it, and last week, it was the chickens.} So we braved the cold drizzle and spent half a day shoveling you know what. {I know my husband is dying for me to say it! He gets a kick out of my occasional free farmgirl barn language.}

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And the whole time I worked, barely able to breathe because of the stench of sheep urine and every kind of animal poop, I thought of Jesus. Yes, I thought of poop and Jesus at the very same time.

Because this is where Emmanuel, God with us, made His arrival. Of all places, the King of Kings chose a dirty, dusty, stinky, poopy place where animals sleep, eat and go to the bathroom. Really God?!?! As if being born weren’t humble enough, the High King of Heaven chose to be born in a mess of stinky hay and animal poop. How’s that for a disruptive view of Christmas?

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With every stinky scoop I shoveled, I couldn’t help but wonder why God came this way. Why would the King of Kings leave heaven’s glory and splendor for a poop-filled place? Why would the Savior of the world make His fleshly debut in a rough and dirty feed trough? Why would anyone leave a throne and all the majesty of heaven for the lowliest kind of birth? Why, God? Why did You choose to come to us this way?

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As I broke open a fresh hay bale and scattered it around the sheep pen, I thought of the night Jesus was born. Did the sheep peer over the manger adoringly? Did they snuggle in close to keep the baby who was born a king nice and warm? I doubt it. Don’t get me wrong: there were definitely some sheep in the scene. And probably some precious little lambs, too. How do I know? Because on the night Jesus was born, the angels delivered the most glorious birth announcement the world has ever seen to the shepherds…and sheep follow their shepherds. {You should see our two sheep with our Anatolian Shepherds.}

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And why, God? Why did You choose to give shepherds the very fist glimpse of Your glory? Why did you announce Your arrival to such ragamuffins? Didn’t You know they’d bring all their dirty, stinky mess into your sweet little manger scene? And You know how sheep are: they don’t care if you’re a king or a ragamuffin; they pee where they want to, and it stinks to high heaven! You didn’t have to choose that place or those people. You could’ve made room at the inn. You could’ve chosen a palace for that matter! You’re a KING! Even I know a barn is no place for a king to be born!

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But You, Emmanuel, You still come like this. You come into this place for this kind of person. I’m every bit as messy and unlikely to give You the glory you deserve as those ragamuffin shepherds were, and yet here You are. With me. For me.

And in that moment, I don’t know whether to wipe the sweat or wipe the tears. I don’t know whether to gasp for fresh air from the stink, or gasp in humility because You still come like this. My spirit yields and my heart wants to kneel down, right there in the mess of the barn. Because of the way You came.

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Because this is still the way You come.

Your arrival even this day is gloriously disruptive. You come in the middle of the mess. You come where we wish we had poinsettias instead of pumpkins on the porch. You come where we wish we were better, faster, smarter, skinnier. You come where we have failed a hundred times and will fail a thousand more. You come into the aches and pains of this world, the mess of relationships, and the deep longings of our hearts. You come into every broken, messy place, never once demanding that we clean this place up before You enter. Our mess is where You choose to come and be with us.

Emmanuel, God With Us. This Christmas…and always.

Treasuring all of these things in my heart,

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P.S. I’m reminded of a song I quoted on my Christmas card years ago…long before I knew a thing about barns. It still speaks to me today. Manger Throne by Third Day:

What kind of King would leave His throne
In Heaven to make this earth His home?
While men seek fame and great renown
In lowliness our King comes down

CHORUS: Jesus, Jesus, precious one
How we thank You that You’ve come
Jesus, Jesus, precious one
A manger throne for God’s own son

You left the sound of angels’ praise
To come for men with unkind ways
And by this Baby’s helplessness
The power of nations is laid to rest

What kind of King would come so small
From glory to a humble stall?
That dirty manger is my heart too
I’ll make it a royal throne for You

 

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  • Gracia @ Gracious Offering - Linsey, Love your thoughts and first hand insight about the humble birth of Jesus. I’m with you…so amazed that He would choose to come to us in this way. And, so incredibly thankful! Have a joyful Advent season with your family…and the farm animals!ReplyCancel

  • Julie - Beautiful Linsey! We too have lived with a barn for a year now… and wow, does your story ever resonate. So thankful for Jesus and the humble way He came. Love your words as a reminder and an encouragement. His words to me this season have been to make room for Jesus… we can do this as we clean barns, coops, entertain, in quiet prayer, family time. Just as there was no room in the inns of Bethlehem, we can get so busy decorating, shopping, cleaning. But, He is showing me, little by little, that we can invite Him into even those places that don’t seem holy. He is with us. Then, of course, we can honor Him in those places of prayer and worship as well.

    Merry early Christmas (don’t worry, you still have time, and yes… it came fast this year!). xo, julieReplyCancel

  • Julie - Beautiful Linsey! We too have lived with a barn for a year now… and wow, does your story ever resonate.

    So thankful for Jesus and the humble way He came. Love your words as a reminder and an encouragement. His words to me this season have been to make room for Jesus… we can do this as we clean barns, coops, entertain, in quiet prayer, family time. Just as there was no room in the inns of Bethlehem, we can get so busy decorating, shopping, cleaning, etc. that we temporarily forget the reason we are doing it all – or maybe we start doing it for other reasons. But, He is showing me, little by little, that we can invite Him into even those places that don’t seem holy, as an act of worship and communion with Him. He is with us!

    Merry early Christmas (don’t worry, you still have time, and yes… it came fast this year!). xo, julieReplyCancel

  • Julie - Sorry Linsey! I think I posted twice… the first time it said it didn’t go through – when I posted again – I noticed my first comment was there! whoops 🙂ReplyCancel

  • Jennifer Camp - Linsey, I so needed to read these words and let my heart be present in this scene. Your last few paragraphs, especially, make my breath catch. Thank you, wise and beautiful sister. Bless you.ReplyCancel

  • Katey - beautiful thoughts about our loving Lord. Thank you.ReplyCancel

  • emi - Beautiful, Linsey, beautiful thought/reminder! You have a gift with words! How thankful I am that God allowed me to privilege to visit your Ten 10 Farm with my niece and meet you. What a special memory was made that day. I will be praying for you through this winter season! Merry Christmas to you & your family!ReplyCancel

  • Amanda - Precious Linsey-girl. Your words have captivated me. You were made for this journey–your humble, honest spirit has the rare ring of TRUTH, and your words spill out with beauty and rawness. You said “YES!” when he called you, and you were willing to share it with us, even when it’s tough–you share. Your words bless me richly, and your journey inspires me. I love you, precious sister, and I am praying EACH DAY of this blessed holiday season for PEACE from Him to flood your soul. Much, much, much love!!!!ReplyCancel

  • sheri - Hey Linsey – I JUST THOUGHT about you today and wondered how I lost “following” your blog. Then I read Paige’s post tonight and there was a comment from you – God is so good! You have such a way with words and I feel so blessed to read your post. Merry Christmas! xoxoReplyCancel

  • JJ - What a wonderful post! I loved the message. I had thought about the dirt and animals and maybe even a little pooh but never the pee smell! You know if the inn was full then the manger was probably not at its best. (Like my garage at Christmas.)
    On another note, I think we are more apt to find contentment when we are doing a hard job when we think of God as we do it! Keep up the good work and the good writing!ReplyCancel

  • Jerri Lynn - Another beautiful blog post….love truly came down at Christmastime. Merry Christmas to you, sweet Linsey. Thank you for sharing your heart and home with us as you so eloquently do.ReplyCancel

  • chrissi - thank you for bringing a bit of “real” to my vision of the first christmas. your words are such a gift. merry christmas.ReplyCancel

  • Come As You Are » Bravehearted Beauty - […] even lingered in the barn a few times this week to ponder his arrival a little more deeply. Oh, the crazy way He came! I still don’t get it. {And that feels […]ReplyCancel

  • zanne dailey - thought you might like this, written by my pastor/writer friend Doug Brendel:

    https://dougbrendel.wordpress.com/2013/12/24/dirty-2/ReplyCancel

  • Faith In The Fog » Bravehearted Beauty - […] fog is God himself. He’s a God who draws near. Christmas reminds us that He is God with us. The crazy way He came still astounds me, but I know this: He still comes today. He comes right into the middle of the […]ReplyCancel

  • Christmas Is For Misfits » Bravehearted Beauty - […] know a thing about motherhood, much less mothering the Son of God. And then there’s the crazy way He came…the way He made His entry. The King of Kings was born in a manger…a nice way of saying […]ReplyCancel