There along the road was a man and a women, the man was walking and guiding a weary donkey.
The womans head was hung in silence and her burden was great, she was with child and the baby
was due to be born very soon. The day had been long and she wished to reach the city so she could
find and Inn. Her husband was worried for they had traveled far and as tired as he was he knew that
his wife Mary could not go much farther.
It grew late and by the time they reached the city every where they searched to rest was full... they came
upon and Inn that was old and broken down but had hopes to find shelter there. But at last it was also full.
The man who owned the Inn was at first angry for being woken up from a sound sleep, but seeing the weary young mother
to be he took pity and offered them his stable to rest in... it would at least be covered and Mary was already starting
to have labor pains and knew that this child would be born and soon.
Joseph thanked the man and took Mary into the shelter and made her a bed of hay, trying to make her comfortable
as possible. Mary was unafraid for she knew that the Lords angels were near by watching and waiting and that on this
night the Son of God would be born! Joesph was a good man ,a man of God, many had scorned him when had married Mary
knowing she was with a child that was not his and thought him crazy for believing her when she said she had been chosen
the honor of bearing the child of the Lord.
As the night continued she labored heavy and soon the child was born, the heavens sang out the glory of the birth and a star
shone bright in the Heavens to mark the place where he laid; as Mary gazed upon this small child she was filled with wonder,
how could such a small child be destined to teach of the Lord and save all from sin...Here she was the Mother of the chosen one,
He was to be called Jesus... The angels sang their sweet chorus and word spread fast of the birth of the Messiah.
Wise men traveling from the East had heard of the birth of the King and was soon lead to him by a bright star.. as soon as they found
the resting place the star disappeared, there in a lowly manger they found a humble carpenter, his wife and a boy child, as they presented
the gifts they had brought, they knew he was the King of Kings.. and Son of the Lord for as they gazed into the eyes of the infant a wisdom
beyond the few short days of his life dwelt there.
There is a song called Mary Did you Know?
I have sung this many times in church at the Christmas season, I think about some of the words, they go like this; Mary did you know that your baby boy would some day part the waters, Mary did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters,Mary did you know that the child that you delivered, will soon deliver you? Mary Did you know? Did you know that your baby boy would one day be the king, and when you kissed the baby you kissed the face of God, Mary did you know?, that song runs through my head many times as I wonder what she must have been thinking on the night her child was born and in the years that followed before he gave His life up that fateful day on the cross for us.
As I write this story I can picture that time... I know how I felt when my children were born. The honor I felt at being given the gift of life. How special it was to look upon the face of my sleeping baby and I wondered what it must have been like for Mary on that night so long ago, the gift she was given and the burden she must bear to bring a child so special into the world. All the year through God is in my life but at Christmas time the closeness I feel is brought home as I listen to the story of His sons birth and the sacrifice that they both one day made to save us all from sin. As this "Christ" mas season begins I think of how it is now so commercialized and how so many have forgotten the true meaning. I want to take this time to wish you and yours the beauty and blessings of Christmas.
