CHRISTMAS HOPE?
And she laid Him in a
manger for there was no
How
many times have we read this passage and wondered why Joseph and Mary had not
planned ahead and reserved a hotel room or at least a bed and breakfast
accommodation for one night? The census was a decree known through the land and
Mary and Joseph knew that at some point they had to go to the town in which
Joseph was born. This young couple had made a covenant to be together even
though the baby she carried was not Joseph’s and she was nearing her delivery
time. What a stressful situation they both faced! An unknown destination, a
pending birth of their child and no clear plan as to where to stay. No doubt they were feeling the stress of the
journey with each movement of the donkey as they rode and walked towards
Bethlehem.
Night
came as they were arriving in the village and there was no place to stay.
Joseph was getting desperate for a place to stay. Mary had been having
contractions and was in labour. Her time was soon to deliver. How could she
under the circumstances be comfortable? Where would her baby be born? Her own
family was far away and Joseph’s family were in the area but they could hardly
receive them under the circumstances. Yet God provided a warm clean space- a
barn outside of an inn full of animals of different kinds and from different
places.
What
does Mary do with the newborn baby? She wraps him up in warm blankets and
gently places him in a make shift crib. This crib was used only hours before to
feed all the animals and now it is filled with a baby boy new to the world.
Mary places this baby into the world where animals eat, and yet as she does
this, the hope she has for this baby has just begun to be shared with the world.
As we
come to the time when we celebrate Jesus’ birth as a human baby boy to what
extent have we placed our hope? The
Christmas hymn, “O Little Town of Bethlehem” is a favourite hymn of this
wonderful season which celebrates the gifts of God to us in Jesus- hope, peace,
joy and love. One of the lines we sing states, “the hopes and fears of all the
years, are met in thee tonight.” Do we really believe that Christ came to give
us hope not just for Christmas but for all the moments of our lives when we
need to have something to look at beyond ourselves? Are we finding this hope
when we remember Mary who gave birth and then placed this baby in a feeding
trough? Would you have done this when
there were hungry animals around? Where do you place your hope?
Without
hope what are we? Without trusting in God’s gift to us in Jesus, do we have
hope beyond ourselves? Just what do you
pray for and hope for as we continue to prepare for Christ’s birth in our
lives?
Let us pray:
Holy God of grace and
love, we praise you that through Jesus we do receive the gift of hope. We pray
O God that you would open our hearts to know you and to love you as you love
us- unconditionally. Enable us to believe that the baby Mary placed in the
manger is your Son who alone fulfilled your promise to bring new life and new
hope to all who would believe. Hear us we pray in the name of the Christ child,
Jesus. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment
please type your comments here.