Devotionals

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Luke 2:7, "And she gave birth to her Son, her Firstborn; and she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room or place for them in the inn."

It's almost Christmas time... nine days until Christmas to be exact! The shopping is almost complete for some and just beginning for others. We have the trees up, the lights around our houses, and there are presents waiting to be unwrapped. There are people to see, places to go, and things to do.

Quite honestly, Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I love the lights and the music. There's food and gift giving and time spent with loved ones. It feels so warm. It's Christmas.

It's easy for me to get so wrapped up in our American Christmas that I forget the point of it all. I forget the reason we're celebrating... the One we're celebrating.

On Klove, I heard a song called "Just A Girl" by Brandon Heath. He sang about the innkeeper who had no room for Mary, Joseph, and Jesus. They wound up in a manger and the Savior of the world was born in a stable.

I hear the nativity story and how there was no room for Jesus in the inn, and it is discouraging that in the world He came to save, they couldn't even find a suitable place for Him to be born.

Then God gently impresses upon my heart that over 2,000 years later, we oftentimes still don't have room for Jesus.

We get caught up in the business of life, and we tell Jesus that we'll have time for Him later. We'll have room for Him in our lives after our busy schedules settle down. We'll have room for Him after we've enjoyed doing things our own way for a while. Later, we will have room, but not tonight. It's shocking to us that our Savior would have to be born in a manger, yet we still send Him out to the manger today rather than inviting Him into our homes, our hearts, and our every detail of life.

What would life look like if we had room for Jesus?

What would our schools look like?

What would our marriages look like?

What would our friendships look like?

What would we look like?

I am humbled by the fact that I am no different than the innkeeper. I tell Jesus that there is no room all too often.

I don't want to stay that way, though. When Jesus shows up, I want to have room. If there isn't room, I want to get rid of anything that's taking His place.

It's time for us to have room for Jesus!

Dear Jesus,

Thank You for coming and walking in my shoes. Thank You for giving up heaven to come to earth to save me. Lord, I'm sorry for all the times You showed up and I didn't have room. I'm sorry for sending You to the manger instead of inviting You in. Lord, please come into every area of my life and make Yourself at home. My heart is Your home. In Jesus' Name.

Amen.

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