Sunday 12/21/25 "Unlikely Place" Micah 5:2-5

Devotional

Day 1: God With Us: Believe, Receive, Share

In a season that can feel loud and hurried, pause to remember the heart of Christmas: God with us. Jesus left the glories of heaven and stepped into our low places to rescue and restore. You are invited to trust this good news, to receive it deep in your own life, and then to share it with real people you love. Sharing can be as simple as a personal invitation and a warm seat saved for a friend. Make space in your heart, your schedule, and your home so others can hear the hope that God is with us. May this week become a quiet, steady yes to Emmanuel [11:08]

Matthew 1:23: A young woman will bear a son, and people will call him “Immanuel,” meaning God has moved close, choosing to live among us and never leave us.

Reflection: Who is one specific person you will personally invite to join you for worship or a simple conversation about Jesus, and what day and time will you ask them this week?

Day 2: Holy Things In Ordinary Places

Bethlehem was tiny, a shepherding village named “house of bread,” overshadowed by palaces and power. Yet God chose that overlooked place, and even a cave-like stable, to bring his greatest work into the world. This is how God loves to move—quietly, humbly, right where no one expects it. If your life feels small or unseen, hear this: you are right where God can meet you and work through you. Ask him to fill your ordinary with his presence and peace today. God does holy things in ordinary places [55:26]

Micah 5:2–5: Bethlehem, though small among Judah’s towns, from you will rise a ruler linked to ancient promise. God’s people will feel the weight of enemies for a time, but a shepherd-king will stand strong, guiding his flock in God’s strength. His leadership will bring security, honor, and a deep wholeness; he himself will be their peace.

Reflection: What is one ordinary moment in your daily routine (desk, dinner table, commute) where you will intentionally welcome Jesus’ presence this week, and how will you mark that moment?

Day 3: God Uses The Unlikely To Change Everything

The lie says only “special” people get used by God; the truth is God delights to use chipped, everyday plates. Ordinary does not disqualify you—it positions you. The world looks for polish; God looks for willing hearts and open hands. From overlooked places and ordinary people, he brings life, healing, and hope. Believe that your small yes can ripple far beyond what you see. In God’s hands, the common becomes the conduit of his uncommon grace [37:44]

1 Corinthians 1:26–29: Look at your own story—few began with influence or status. God chose what seemed foolish to expose the limits of the wise, and what looked weak to topple the strong. He picked what the world shrugs off so no one can brag, and so all the credit returns to him.

Reflection: What humble skill or small resource you already have could serve someone this week, and what is one step you’ll take in the next 48 hours to offer it?

Day 4: Trust, Surrender, And Partner With God

Trust says, “God, your way is good,” even when the way is hard. Surrender lets go of plans that feel comfortable so that better fruit can grow, like training that stings but strengthens. Partnering with God means walking forward before everything is perfectly clear, expecting him to work through your actual life right now. This path is not about hype; it’s about quiet obedience that accumulates into joy. Take one concrete step today: pray, forgive, invite, serve, or risk a conversation. God meets surrendered people with surprising peace and steady strength [04:25]

Romans 12:1–2: In view of God’s mercy, offer your whole self as a living, breathing act of worship. Don’t be pressed into the mold of this age; let God reshape your thinking so you can discern what pleases him—his good, life-giving will.

Reflection: Which specific plan or preference will you place back in God’s hands this week, and what one act of obedience will show that surrender in practice?

Day 5: Make Space And Share The Good News

Love makes room—extra chairs, open schedules, warm invitations—so others can hear that God is with us. This isn’t about numbers or patting ourselves on the back; it’s about neighbors, coworkers, and family hearing hope and experiencing welcome. Many will come if personally invited, especially when they sense genuine care. Be the one who asks, “Come with me,” and then sit with them, sing with them, and listen with them. Pray for courage and for divine appointments as you walk through your week. The news is too good to keep to ourselves [08:54]

Romans 10:14–15: How can people call on the One they’ve never trusted, or trust in the One they’ve never heard about? And how will they hear unless someone speaks, and how will anyone speak unless they are sent? Beautiful are the steps of those who carry good news.

Reflection: Write down two names you will invite or host this week; when will you reach out, and how can you make their experience tangibly warm and welcoming?

Sermon Summary

God with us. That’s the heart of Christmas, and the heartbeat of our gathering. God wanted to be with us so much that he left the glory of heaven to step into our world—to rescue, to save, to be with you and me. That’s why we’re making room this week: more chairs, more invitations, more space so people in our lives can hear and encounter that good news. Yes, there will be fun and warmth—kids’ walk-up pageant, a mountain of hot chocolate toppings—but the aim is simple: invite someone you love into the reality of God with us.

We walked with our kids through Bethlehem—the “house of bread”—and then asked the question underneath “Where are you from?” Are we special or ordinary? We laughed about ancestry percentages and Dutch jokes, china plates and chipped plates, but then got honest: too many of us have believed the lie that God only uses a special few, and the rest of us are just spectators. That lie sidelines the body of Christ.

Through Micah 5:2–5 and Luke 2, we saw God’s pattern. Bethlehem was small and overlooked, the stable was common and close to dung and soot, and yet that’s where the King entered. Not Herod’s marble height, but a cave’s stone trough. The world looks for spectacle; God chooses the ordinary. So here is the hope and the call: God does holy things in ordinary places. That means your cubicle, your classroom, your kitchen table, your neighborhood—right where you are.

I named the script many of us hear: I’m not far enough along. I don’t know enough. I’m too ordinary. God’s word back to us: You’re right where I need you. Personally and corporately. We are not “just” Saugatuck-Douglas-Fennville. God is stirring for more—revival, renewal, a shining light of humble, beautiful Christianity in our region. How do we respond? Trust that this is true. Surrender as God rearranges our plans. Partner with him—pray, invite, serve, give, love—expecting God to work through chipped plates. Believe it. Receive it. Share it.

Key Takeaways

1. God with us must be shared This isn’t about filling a room; it’s about filling a life with hope. Personal invitation is an act of love that opens a door for someone to encounter the presence of Jesus. Make space, carry an invite, and ask someone to come sit with you—because presence changes people. [08:54]
2. Reject the lie of special few The enemy sidelines believers by convincing us we’re too ordinary to matter. Scripture flips that: God delights to use ordinary people in ordinary places to do extraordinary good. Name the lie, renounce it, and step into the work God prepared for you. [37:44]
3. Holy work in ordinary places Bethlehem was small, the manger was common, and yet Heaven’s King arrived there. God often chooses the overlooked so none of us confuse glory for human grandness. Expect God to meet you in the mundane and move through what seems insignificant. [55:26]
4. You’re right where God needs you “Not far enough along” is a fear, not a verdict. God begins with what you have, not what you lack, and meets you on the road of obedience. Offer your present season—your limits and all—and watch grace multiply in real relationships. [59:08]
5. Trust, surrender, and partner daily Trust anchors us when the path isn’t easy. Surrender lets God rearrange our plans so his fruit can grow. Partnership is concrete—prayer, invitation, generosity, hospitality—walking with Jesus in the ordinary until his power becomes visible. [64:25]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[08:54] - Invite Cards and Make Space
[13:48] - Kids: Jesse Tree and Advent
[21:35] - Bethlehem: Better-Than-Fairy-Tale Rescue
[32:30] - Where Are You From?
[35:46] - Ordinary People vs Special Few
[37:44] - Exposing Satan’s Sideline Strategy
[43:04] - Tiny Bethlehem, Big Promise
[49:12] - Luke 2: Birth in Bethlehem
[52:28] - What the Manger Really Was
[55:26] - Holy Work in Ordinary Places
[59:08] - You’re Right Where God Needs You
[61:48] - Vision for Our Region
[64:25] - Trust, Surrender, and Partner
[67:32] - Benediction and Sending

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
- Micah 5:2–5

Observation questions

In Micah 5:2, what details show how small and overlooked Bethlehem was, and what surprising promise does God attach to that small place?
In Micah 5:4–5, how is the coming ruler described, and what will his leadership bring to the people?
What contrasts were highlighted between Herod’s impressive palace and the ordinary, common setting where Jesus was laid? What details make the birthplace easy to overlook? [52:28]
What specific lie keeps many believers on the sidelines, and how was that described as a strategy to slow down kingdom impact? [37:44]

Interpretation questions

Why might God choose a small, overlooked place like Bethlehem to bring his King into the world? What does that say about how God wants to display his glory and reach ordinary people?
Micah 5:5 says, “he will be the source of their peace.” What kind of peace (shalom) is in view here, and how does that connect with Jesus arriving in ordinary spaces rather than royal ones?
If “God does holy things in ordinary places,” how should that shape a person’s view of their workplace, classroom, kitchen table, or neighborhood? [55:26]
“You’re right where I need you.” How does that truth confront the fear of being “not far enough along,” and what does simple obedience look like from that starting point? [59:08]

Application questions

God with us must be shared. Who are 1–2 people you will personally invite to Christmas worship or a meal/coffee this week? When will you ask, and what will you say? Consider, “Come sit with me.” [08:54]
Name the lie. Where do you most feel “too ordinary to matter” right now—at work, at home, in your neighborhood, or in church? Name it out loud. What one small, faithful step will you take this week to resist that lie? [37:44]
Holy work in ordinary places. Pick one ordinary place you’ll be this week (cubicle, classroom, kitchen table, locker room, store aisle). What’s one concrete way you’ll expect God to meet you there—praying for someone by name, bringing a meal, a simple word of hope, an invitation? [55:26]
Trust and surrender. Where is God rearranging your plans right now? What would surrender look like in that area this week, and what good fruit might God be after on the other side? [01:01:48]
Chipped plates. Where do you feel chipped, limited, or not enough? How could that be exactly where grace multiplies? What step will you take with that limitation in hand—serve, speak, invite, give, or show up? [01:04:25]
Partner with God for renewal. What would humble, beautiful Christianity look like on your street or in your town? What is one act of hospitality, generosity, or service you will do this week to be part of that light? [01:01:48]
Believe it, receive it, share it. What part of your life is hardest to believe “God with us” right now? How will you open that area—through prayer, confession, or asking for help—and who might you share this hope with after you receive it? [11:08]

Sermon Clips

41s

#GodUsesEveryone

“but before we even dig into the passage i want to say that is a lie from satan and he has used that lie for far too long to sideline the majority of christians to thinking i'm just an ordinary christian who god can't use and god only uses those special vessels and satan loves that because the majority of those who are saved and followers of jesus are thinking in their head and trusting in their heart that god can't use them in mighty ways”

46s

#PartnerWithGod

“that's his promise to you personally to me personally but to us corporately and he's saying will you trust will you surrender and will you partner with me so that i can do holy things in this ordinary in this common place and i can change the world through that and the question of advent is will we join the story that god has been telling for 2 000 years”

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Sunday 12/21/25 "Unlikely Place" Micah 5:2-5 | Pastor Mike Van Drie