When God Interrupts
Discover how God's holy interruptions, like those in the Christmas story, can lead to unexpected blessings and a deeper connection with Him. Learn to develop a sensitivity to these moments and exchange your plans for God's divine purpose.
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The Original Christmas Interruption
Most of us would agree that it’s impolite to interrupt. As children, we are taught not to do that.
Sometimes, God MUST interrupt us. We wouldn’t always remember that He has something to say if He didn’t. Thank God that He has a habit of interrupting, and His interruptions, unlike ours, are always holy! I want us to talk about developing a sensitivity to holy interruptions.
The Bible shows examples of God interrupting what His children are doing and asking them to adjust. There are no better examples of holy interruption than the Christmas narrative.
Mary and Joseph were interrupted. God chose to break into their normal engagement process with an announcement from an angel of the Lord that Mary was pregnant with the Savior. “This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.” Talk about an adjustment! They had to deal with the embarrassment and fear of this interruption. But they adjusted!
The Shepherds were interrupted. The Shepherds were doing what they always do: watching over their flock and protecting the sheep in their care. They weren’t expecting an angel of the Lord to suddenly appear, to see the glory of the Lord, or to hear the best news ever. But they adjusted! They dropped their dirty but necessary work of sheep tending and said, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened.” Sometimes, we’ve got to drop and stop what we’re doing to get in on what He’s doing!
The Wise Men were interrupted. On their lengthy trip to find the Savior, they were warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, “so they departed by another way.” But they adjusted! It doesn’t take long to get into a rut. Sometimes, God says, “I don’t want you to go this way, but another way!” We are going to do it differently this time.
Jesus was interrupted. He left His place in heaven and suspended His divine privileges to come to earth for us so we might someday return to heaven with Him. Even while on earth, His entire ministry was full of interruptions. People’s needs and requests bombarded his life. But He adjusted!
Each of these major players in the Christmas story encountered a holy interruption from God, characterized as frightening, inconvenient, time-consuming, and stretching them beyond their imagination and comfort zones. But they were asked to be flexible and change their plans.
It’s not wrong to plan, but it’s wrong or unwise to hold too tightly to our plans or to be married to our agendas. Pastor Tommy Barnett said, “Make your plans, then give God the eraser!”
James said in chapter four, “Don’t boast about tomorrow saying, ‘today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money,’ why, you don’t even know what will happen tomorrow.”
If we’re honest with ourselves, rarely is anything in our lives actually in our control. Most everything is reacting to things that happen to us, and this is where we must have strong confidence in the Lordship of Jesus Christ; in His sovereign control, our lives happen.
“In their hearts, humans plan their course (way), but the Lord establishes their steps.” Proverbs 16:9
The key to a peaceful Christian life is learning to be sensitive to these interruptions and see them as holy moments and gifts from God. To exchange our plans for God’s plans demands a confident faith that His ways are right and best.
Steps towards Developing a Sensitivity to Holy Interruptions:
1) Leave Room for God
American author and pastor Francis Chan said, “God, interrupt whatever I am doing so that I can join you in what You are doing!”
2) Be Available to God
Do we really want to live a life available to God enough to lay aside our plans to fit into His? Mary did.
MARY: “May it be to me as you have said!” (not as I want) Luke 1:38 (explanation added).
Are we more willing to be led by His Spirit than by ourselves (our compulsions, desires, and fears)? Jesus prayed, “Not my will, but Thy will be done!”
3) Give Thanks For Those Who Were Interrupted For You
There are too many people to count for me. We once had a neighbor who stopped to see us at the worst time ever for him. Shortly before he knocked, our garbage disposal completely stopped up. Potato peels did it! I had no idea what to do. At one point, we had potato peels shooting from a pipe on our roof. Our neighbor could do anything and stayed for hours to unclog the disposal. God bless Jerry!
We might be the answer to someone else’s prayer. Someone else might be the answer to ours. Only God can arrange this!
4) Be Willing to Adjust for God and Others
I am afraid that we would rather fuss than adjust. But God’s grace can help us adjust, go with the flow, and even walk in the peace of His presence. There is a special blessing for those willing to change courses because of God’s nudge and wholehearted trust in Him.
“We must be willing to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. God will constantly cross our paths and cancel our plans by sending us people claims and petitions. We may pass them by, preoccupied with more important tasks…when we do that, we pass by the visible sign of the cross raised in our path to show us that not our way, but God’s way must be done.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together
Lord, as we approach the celebration of your coming, we thank you for interrupting the whole world to save us. Develop within us a sensitivity to your holy interruptions. Amen.
TL;DR
The blog explores the notion that God sometimes interrupts our lives to convey His messages and purpose. These interruptions are distinct from ordinary interruptions and hold great significance.
The Christmas narrative is filled with instances of divine interruptions, including Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, and the Wise Men. They all experienced interruptions that led them to fulfill God's plan.
Flexibility is important to being open to God's guidance. The key is to leave room for God and be available to His will, just as Mary and Jesus demonstrated in the Bible.
Rather than resisting interruptions, we should embrace them as opportunities to walk in God's peace and presence. That’s when we’ll understand the special blessings that come from adjusting our plans to align with God's will.
Related Reading
Embracing Divine Opportunities by Rev. Paul Lawler
The Gift of a Savior by Rev. Paul Lawler
The Christmas Story Prologue by Bro. Chris Carter
