Each piece had been contained in a small Christmas box – until now. Today, the box was enormous! What could it be? I knew the girls would quickly understand what was inside. Well, Eva would, and Charlotte would want to take the piece and run with it.
Eva quickly opened the box while Charlotte sat beside her, eating her blueberries and toast. There it was; the stable – my favorite piece of the Nativity. I strategically set the scene and began where I left off the day before in our story. Eva and Charlotte hung on every word I truthfully yet, poetically polished.
Arriving in Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph could find no room anywhere. People rushed by them, blissfully unaware and consumed with their desires. Doors shut in their face, with little concern for Mary’s condition.
What were they to do? Mary had ridden on the donkey as far as she could go. The Angel’s words came chiming back to him. Joseph, desperate to care for his growing family, kept searching, pleading for someone to make room. How could the son of God not have a place to lay his head? No, this would not do! There must be somewhere for them to shelter. Is there anyone who can help us?
I can see the Innkeeper frantically trying to accommodate the guests cramped into his establishment. Yet, with one look passed Joseph as he opens the front door, he spots Mary. Peace immediately fills his heart where turmoil had been and, in his mercy, offers the stable. Not realizing the magnitude of his generosity – but where else should the lamb of God be born but in a stable.
As the world slept, one Holy night, into the manger low crept Heaven’s child
– Newsong
With these thoughts, I asked my dad to write a poem about the Innkeeper. It has become a framed work of art that I sit out each Christmas. I hope you enjoy meeting the Innkeeper as much as I do.
The Innkeeper
When Joseph arrived in Bethlehem
With Mary and his unborn son
He began the search for a place to stay
But soon found out there were none
The Innkeeper may have been a cousin or friend
Since Bethlehem was Joseph’s roots
Perhaps he knew the family but still turned them away
Till he saw the girl and could deduce
Her time is at hand; maybe I can help
Besides, I have a daughter too
I know what it would mean to me
If someone helped her make do
“I have a stable,” I can hear him say
It’s not much, but you’re welcome to it
It’s in a cave out behind the house,
And down the hill just a bit
I knew your Father, and you remind me of him
I hear you chose a carpenter’s life
Do you think you could build us a door?
I better send for the midwife.
If the baby she carries is a boy
Will he be a carpenter too?
If so, perhaps he can build a bridge
A way to cross from old to new
This was no refusal
As some might think, today
This moment was intentional
This moment in the hay
For little lambs are not born in a house
They belong in a stable
Jesus was the Lamb of God
And by His birth, He would enable
Each one to choose, as the Innkeeper did
To make room or send away
The one who’s knocking at your heart’s door
Is still looking for room today
Jim Stockdale
What is Christmas all about? The greatest gift ever given – a gift that brought forgiveness to all mankind. A gift that, if received, washes us white as snow. Christmas is about Jesus.
I often wonder if the Innkeeper was remembered when he went to Heaven, not for turning Jesus away, but for offering him a place to stay. Make room for Jesus this Christmas, just as the Innkeeper did.
I will be away next week due to the Christmas holiday. I will return the following week to your inbox. I hope you have a Merry Christmas!
