The Christian What If Zone: Room Vacancy

 

The Christian What If Zone: Room Vacancy

I remember when I was about six years old. The school I attended brought all the students into the gymnasium. There, we watched three short films: a version of The Night Before Christmas, the story of the Nativity, and a movie about animals in Africa. When we watched the story of the birth of Christ, I was surprised that the innkeeper told Joseph and Mary that there was no room at the inn. 

This Christmas season I started wondering - what if the innkeeper had room for Mary and Joseph at the inn that first Christmas Eve. It almost seems like it would have taken something away from the narrative. After all, the image of the baby Jesus being placed in the manger is impactful. Still, my mind wandered to the innkeeper. How would giving Mary and Joseph a place to stay possibly have changed his life?

These thoughts brought me to Obed-Edom the Gittite. In 1 Chronicles chapter 13, there is an interesting story of the time King David first started brining the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. Along the way, the ark seemed to be unsteady, and a man named Uzzah reached out to steady it. When he touched the ark, the Lord became angry and struck him down.

When this happened, David became angry and afraid. He decided that he was not ready to bring the ark into the City of David. So, he took the ark to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite, and he left it there for three months. During that time, Obed-Edom’s entire household and everything he had was blessed. The commentary in the New International Version Bible suggests that his blessings may have included numerous sons.

So, what if the innkeeper had a room in the inn for Mary and Joseph? What if he had invited them on into his place to stay? First, the Christ child would have been born in his home. The Son of God would have started his earthly journey in his inn. That would have been a blessing enough, but if we can equate the story to that of Obed-Edom, the blessings might have spread to his entire household. I cannot help but wonder what he may have missed.

I have a question for you. Have you told Jesus that you have room in your heart for Him? I hope the answer is yes. Still, for some, the answer may be no or possibly not yet. Either of these answers means you are missing out on the blessings God has in store for you. Trust me, there are blessings - first and foremost, the blessing of eternal salvation, and more than you can imagine.

Now, do not get me wrong. I am not saying that once you accept Jesus in your life, you will never have trials. That is not the case. You will go through hardships because that is part of life. The difference is that you will recognize the blessings you have.

In the last 14 months, I have had to go through four different surgeries, including a quadruple bypass and a splenectomy. I also endured months of chest pains, infusions, and a round of chemotherapy. It was challenging, to say the least, but during that time, I saw blessings after blessings in my life. One of the biggest blessings I had was hope. I knew that no matter how bad it got, in the end, God had me. If I did not survive my surgeries, I would have gone on to spend eternity in Heaven.

I also had fellow believers praying for me during my challenge. Just as I pray for all my brothers and sisters in Christ, including you. If you are not a believer, I am also praying for you. I am praying you will open the doors and invite Jesus to come and stay with you. He is knocking, and he is waiting for you to welcome him in.

What if you said, “Yes, I have room for you. Come on in.”

 

Have a blessed day,

Layman Ray

 

For more information on salvation, please visit Salvation's Path (allsoulscount.com) This is a link to All Souls Count’s web site.