The Long Way Around
The Long Way Around
Joseph didn’t get the shortest route.
Mary didn’t get the easiest story.
There was no direct path to Bethlehem.
No shortcut around confusion, fear, or uncertainty.
Just obedience that kept moving forward, one step at a time.
Christmas reminds me that detours are sometimes the path itself.
I was in Israel recently, and one thing became abundantly clear.
The shortest distance between two places there is rarely a straight line.
The terrain won’t allow it.
Hills, valleys, stone, and desert force the road to bend and turn.
Straight lines sound efficient.
They just aren’t realistic.
That stayed with me.
I was talking with a work acquaintance not long after who was frustrated.
He said it feels like nothing ever comes easy.
Even when the destination is good, the road getting there feels unnecessarily hard.
I understood exactly what he meant.
We tend to assume that if something is right, it should also be smooth.
If it’s part of God’s purpose, it should move faster.
But Scripture tells a different story.
God rarely leads His people in straight lines.
Not because He enjoys delay.
But because formation happens in the bends.
The long way builds strength that shortcuts never could.
It teaches trust without full visibility.
It shapes character before it delivers the prize.
Joseph learned to lead without answers.
Mary learned to trust without control.
Neither lesson comes from an easy road.
Sometimes the longer path isn’t punishment.
It’s preparation.
Sometimes the delay isn’t denial.
It’s development.
And sometimes the terrain itself is the lesson.
If today feels harder than it should,
if progress feels slower than expected,
Christmas offers a quiet reminder.
God knows the landscape.
He knows where straight lines won’t hold.
And He has never wasted a single step.
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