“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.” Luke 2:7 When my first child was born, I traveled in a car to a modern hospital, where I was quickly…
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 Can you imagine how it must have been for…
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting, (Micah 5:2, Holy Bible, New King James).
- My favorite Old Testament characters, ancestors of Jesus associated with Bethlehem, are woven through time. From weeping to rejoicing, Jacob buried Rachel, his beloved wife, there. Ruth, a foreigner from Moab, married Boaz. Samuel anointed David to be King of Israel. When Joseph of the New Testament journeyed there with Mary, his betrothed wife, for the required census, the greatest celebration of all occurred. Tiny Bethlehem, you made your mark when You became the birthplace of Jesus, the Savior of the world.
- Prayer : Eternal God, You spoke of Bethlehem’s importance from ancient days. Immanuel—God with us—at the birth of Jesus linked the past to a new world with a future. Amen.
- Devotion by Violet Carr Moore
Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child, (Luke 2:4-5, Holy Bible, New Living Translation).
- Joseph, a descendant of David, had to travel from Nazareth, Galilee to Bethlehem, Judah to be counted in the census decreed by Caesar Augustus. The journey, estimated to between seventy and ninety miles (up to 140 kilometers) through rough terrain, had to be a major challenge for Mary, his espoused wife, heavy with child. I tried to visualize Mary on a donkey, a familiar Christmas-card scene. I can’t imagine her walking that distance either. No matter how she made that journey, it had to be uncomfortable if not down-right agonizing. She did not question the journey knowing that life would not be a smooth road, but understanding that each step led toward a promise.
- Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to enjoy the journey You have outlined for me.
- Devotion by Violet Carr Moore