Night in Bethlehem

This weekend our church gym has become the the Bethlehem market place and our foyer is the site of the stable where Mary & Joseph stayed the night of Jesus' birth. Our little family has the privilege of playing the part of the Holy family. Last night while I was holding "baby Jesus" and listening to Silent Night, I couldn't help but think about what that night may have been like for the young couple. Mary was a young girl who had been given a BIG job...to be the mother of the Savior of the World! Can you even imagine what was running through her head that night as she and her new husband (who was not her baby's daddy) searched the town for a place to stay because she was about to deliver a baby? Last night as Bobby and I wondered the market place asking people if they knew of a place for us to stay I couldn't help but wonder....Was Mary having contractions? Were they severe? Did her water break? Was there anyone else with her & Joseph in the stable to help deliver the baby? Then there are the questions I have about baby Jesus....Did he cry a lot? Did he have explosive diapers? How often did he have to feed? Did Mary have trouble getting him to take naps (that thought just came today while trying to get Rosie to do this)? Did he melt their hearts with his smiles? Did he love to snuggle in his mama's arms? Did Mary & Joseph know who this baby boy really was? Did they understand what he had been born to do? Did Mary know that one day she would watch him die a terrible death?

It is easy for us to get so busy during this season that we forget why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. Jesus is the reason for the season! Yes, it's wonderful to give and receive presents and eat yummy cookies with our family and friends, but it's also important that we take some time to reflect on that night in Bethlehem when Jesus came to make a difference in humanity for all of eternity!