December 15
“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” Luke 2:7
The peaceful, quiet scene depicted in most Christmas pageants probably bears very little resemblance to the actual setting of our Lord’s birth. This was no sterile hospital or doctor’s office. It was not a clean room in a home or hotel. There was no doctor or midwife to help deliver the baby. Mary’s mother wasn’t even there to give her comfort and direction. Mary and Joseph were all alone in a town they were not familiar with. They had walked at least 90 miles and there were so many people in town to register for the census that they could not find a hotel room to rest. It probably took them a week to make the journey. Mary must have been completely exhausted not to mention the fact that they probably hadn’t had a bath in a week. I can’t even imagine taking a trip walking for several days and sleeping on the ground when I was 9 months pregnant. I had a hard time just walking (or waddling) across the room without taking a break. And then they arrived in Bethlehem hoping to find a bed to rest and they are told there was no room in the inn for them. The temperatures in Bethlehem at that time of year were mild during the day, but they dropped dramatically at night so when the sun set it was likely very cold.
Poor Joseph was probably beside himself trying to care for his wife. He was such a kind man that it must have been so difficult for him to watch Mary trying to be brave and put on a smile when she was so miserable. He must have promised her that as soon as they got to town, he would get them a room no matter what he had to pay for it. And then he could not keep his promise because there was no room to be found. Finally, an innkeeper took pity on them and let them rest in his barn. While better than being out in the cold, it likely wasn’t very comfortable. And then Mary began to experience contractions. What was he supposed to do? Here they were in a strange town, in a barn behind an inn, surrounded by animals, and his wife was about to give birth to the Son of God. He was already having a really hard time grasping how he was supposed to raise a boy who would be the Savior of the world. It was such a huge responsibility, and he was already messing it up by not even providing a safe place for Him to be born.
I imagine Mary laying in a corner in pain while Joseph is desperately trying to clean out a stall to make a place for the birth. The animals are watching curiously as he lays hay in a pile to make a bed for her. And then he finds a feeding trough in the corner and cleans it out as best he can to provide somewhere safe to lay the baby once He is born. Neither Joseph or Mary had any idea what they are supposed to do next. They both probably assumed they would be home with family to help them when the time came for the birth. And yet together they figured it out and the baby Jesus was born that night in a stable in Bethlehem and He was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. The King of the world was not born in a palace surrounded by riches and glory, He was born in a lowly stable in an ordinary village with only His mother and father to welcome him into the world. God’s ways are often very different from our ways. But God’s ways always turn out to be best.
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