Session 2: No Room At The Inn
Become aware of your surroundings today….
What do you notice?
What are you grateful for? Perhaps there’s someone else with you…or an object that is precious to you; a colour or picture…
Where might you be able to find God wherever you find yourself today?
Become still and attentive to the gaze of God now…
As we continue our Advent journey, let’s imagine Mary and Joseph as they arrive in Bethlehem: The town bustles with people from their own family… yet there is no room for them at the inn… they wonder if they will sleep at all that night… the best they can find is a stable, carpeted with straw for their tiny babe, yet to be born…
Take a moment to step into the scene…
Imagine how Mary and Joseph must have felt… what would they have been going through as they arrive?
Engage your five senses, one at a time…
As you ponder the arrival of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem, take a moment to look at your own heart… are the doors held open wide in welcome…? Or are the bars bolted firmly in place…? Is there room for the outcast, the stranger and the unloved…? Or are there people you have turned away at the threshold…?
Now listen now to Paul’s words from the First Letter to Timothy:
1 Timothy 1:15-17
The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
As you let these words sink in, marvel at how Jesus wants to be born in hearts like ours… with all our faults and failings…with all our broken dreams… he waits with loving patience for us to throw open the doors…to welcome him with love… What would it take for you to open the doors of your heart so that you might hear his infant cry in your heart this Christmas…? Speak to Jesus right now, and listen for his response…
O Wisdom, Lord and Ruler, Root of Jesse, Key of David, Rising Sun, King of the Nations, Emmanuel. Come, Lord Jesus.