My wife and I first met in kindergarten and even swam on the same neighborhood swim team while we were young. My mom was one of her teachers, and my sister was one of her babysitters. Her dad removed my wisdom teeth and those of my siblings. Although we knew one another, we never really noticed each other in certain ways until we were approaching the end of high school. The timing needed to be right for two people who had known each other since we were five years old to have the relationship change from acquaintances, to friends, and eventually to husband and wife.
Most of us can look back over the course of our lives and see that if certain events had happened in a different order, we would not have ended up where we are today. Quite simply, the timing has to be right so that we can become the people God has called each of us to be. One of the clearest examples of this truth can be seen in the way that the Lord showed His great love for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God used the power of the Holy Spirit to bring about “just the right time” so that we all might hear the message of salvation.
“God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” It can be overwhelming to realize that God’s desire for us to live as those who are saved from the power of sin and death could only occur when Jesus gave His life that we would know the joy of grace. As we approach the day when we celebrate Christ’s birth, we need to remember that the Baby of Bethlehem would grow, would teach, and “at just the right time” would walk to the cross to take upon Himself all of our sins so that we would know the love of the Father.