Have you ever had one of those birthdays where you wanted people to throw a party for you? You imagined receiving nice gifts and even hinted at the ones you wanted. Every time you went out with a friend, you expected people to jump up and shout “Happy Birthday!” » You were waiting for it with great impatience, but nothing happened! The party never took place. In fact, it seemed like people had forgotten your birthday. Or worse, they remembered it but couldn’t recognize it.

This is what Christmas can be like. It’s supposed to be a celebration of birth of Jesus Christ but we get involved in bad things and forget his birthday.

Retailers want you to shop until you drop and shoppers are focused on finding all the good deals. Did you know that years ago on Black Friday, a Walmart employee was trampled to death as a crowd rushed to find some savings? And in Tennessee, a woman was trampled at the entrance to a Toys R Us when the store opened. Fortunately, she survived.

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We all need to relax a little and remember the reason for the season: Jesus. This is the time we celebrate the birth of our Savior. In the midst of all our activities and preparations for Christmas, how often do we forget the guest of honor?

We string our lights, trim our trees, talk about the holiday, listen to recorded songs mentioning the birth of Jesus… But how many people actually take time for him? While we run to malls and buy things for everyone we know, we can forget to make room for Him in our schedules.

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Something similar happened in the first century, during the very first Christmas: there was no room for Jesus.

Mary and Joseph were biding their time in Nazareth. Mary’s due date was getting closer and closer. Then, all of a sudden, an announcement was made that everyone was to be taxed, and everyone was to go to their hometown for this to take place.

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Because Mary and Joseph were both descendants of King David, they made their journey to Bethlehem—which was David’s hometown (Luke 2:1-5). When this announcement was made, they probably thought of it as a big deal.

You may be wondering, “Why would God want Mary to make the long, difficult journey to Bethlehem so late in her pregnancy?” » Well, we know that God is detail-oriented. The Scriptures had said that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, so that is where Mary and Joseph were to go.

When we think of the journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, we may idealize this in our minds. We imagine a full moon with the silhouettes of Mary and Joseph against a starry sky and soft, angelic music playing in the background.

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But the fact is that it was a very difficult journey. It would have been difficult under any circumstances, but the fact that Mary was so late in her pregnancy only made the situation even more difficult. It was a journey of approximately 90 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

In those days, people walked about 20 miles a day. They traveled not on a flat, paved road, but on rough terrain that went up and down. It probably would have been the dead of winter, with temperatures in the 30s. At night it would have been freezing cold. Add to that the danger of wild animals, not to mention the threat of potential thieves and bandits.

Mary and Joseph probably took comfort in the idea of ​​a warm bed waiting for them in Bethlehem. But that was not the case. When they arrived, they found that there was no room for them at the inn, so Mary had to give birth in unexpected and less than ideal circumstances; THE Savior of the world may have been born in a stable or cave (Luke 2:7).

There was no place for Jesus at the inn, just as there is no place for Him in some people’s lives today. And even during a season in which he is supposed to be the center, some still don’t make room.

Like us celebrate Christmas and as we prepare to begin a new year with new opportunities, will you make room for Him in your life?

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Original article source: GREG LAURIE: There was no place for Jesus in Bethlehem. But are you going to make room for him?