It always struck me that God arranged things so that “there was no room” for Jesus at the inn. We read in Luke 2:7 the famous words: “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” And, remember, of course, the wonderful Christmas carol that pleads, “let every heart prepare Him room.” I just love the symbolism. I love how Christmas invites us to question if we’ve made any room for Jesus at all in our hearts.
The inn obviously sheltered too many people with too little space. We often think about making room in our schedule, and we consider time the problem. But what about the more literal notion of becoming overwhelmed with people and having no physical space designated to retreat? What if Christmas makes us think about our own lives as little inns where we need a space reserved—a special chair, a prayer closet, a spot at the table, at the base of a tree—where we say, “This is where Jesus and I meet together, where I make room for Him”?
You know where I meet with Jesus: the mustard recliner. It’s worn out, scratched by cats, and tucked in the corner of my bedroom, facing the sunrise. My space in my inn includes a blanket, a journal, a curled up and purring cat, pens galore, my Bible, a few devotional books, a box of tissues.
If you haven’t made a space, think about it. It’s been the best thing to have a physical space where I spend time with the Lord, where I prepare Him room.