In this series we’re looking at the pregnancy, the emergency, and the nativity as we discover three keys to help you avoid having the worse Christmas ever:
1. Adjust your expectations (the pregnancy) 
2. Embrace God’s perspective (the emergency)
3. Repurpose your pain (the nativity)
 
Joseph and Mary embraced God’s perspective during their emergency.
Luke 2:1-7 
Jesus being born in Bethlehem was the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy about the Messiah.
Micah 5:2 “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf.”
John 7:41-42 “Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others said, “But he can’t be! Will the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 For the Scriptures clearly state that the Messiah will be born of the royal line of David, in Bethlehem, the village where King David was born.”
 
That perspective changes everything – what seemed like an emergency was actually fulfillment of prophecy. What if God’s plan for your life requires the ending of YOUR plan for your life? What if its not happening TO you, but happening FOR you? 
 
How to embrace God’s perspective
1. Draw near to God.
James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
Your perspective is tied to your location. This means the closer you are to God, the more you will see things as He sees them.
Psalm 145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call on Him, To all who call on Him in truth.”
 
2. Know the word of God.
Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
God’s will is revealed through God’s word.  
 
3. Adjust your perspective.2 Corinthians 4:17-18 “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
Forced perspective is when a picture creates a false reality because its perspective shows something bigger than it should be. 
 
Are you embracing God’s perspective?