The voices singing carols were melodious.  The candles were glowing softly in the dimly lit room.  There were meaningful words spoken.  The atmosphere of the Christmas Eve candlelight service was perfectly reverent.  In this moment of time, I was expecting the hushed voice of the Lord to whisper to my heart.  Instead, the cry of a baby rang out loudly.  As the service continued, babies across the auditorium cried, giggled, and cooed.  It was then that I heard the voice of the Lord…in the sounds of an infant.  I wondered if that is what it was like on that “silent” night so many years ago…people expecting a holy visitation under the starlit sky.  I wonder if any of them were surprised when the wail of a baby broke the quiet of the night. 

            There are so many times that God does the unexpected.  He shows up in ways that we find odd.  He does not make sense.  He uses bad things like cancer and good things like babies to bring himself glory.  I am constantly surprised by his ways…because they are not like mine.  He sees the bigger picture.  He knows what truly matters.  His unorthodox ways grab our attention.  He comes as a baby in a hay trough?  You have to admit, that is an attention getter.  It is a shock to hear his voice, the creator of the universe, in a baby’s cry.  On this Eve of his birth, I pray that my ears and yours will be opened to hear him in the unpredictable ways that he speaks…and that our expectations will not hinder our hearing.