Lucky To Have A Stable
Henry here. Outside of the kitchen, the warmest and most comfortable place on a farm is the cattle barn. The old fashioned farm with no central heating had one, possibly two warm rooms. The barn, on the other hand, with a thick layer of insulating hay in the loft, is warmed with the cattle’s body heat.
Rev. Martin Luther, the founder of the protestant movement, once reminded his hearers that in their world inns had one large room which overnight travelers were expected to share. Such a place would be a terrible place for young Mary to have her baby. The warm, private, safe stable would be the most ideal place for a traveling soon-to-be mother.
The long and the short of it is that in this strange serendipitous way, the Holy Family was unexpectedly graced, after what must have been all their worry, with a relatively nice place for this wonderful event. They found a home away from home.
We hope the same kind of experience is yours this Christmas. We hope that you find in the often mind numbing rush of Christmas preparations a place of quiet and piece like The Holy Family found. In the gallop of Jingle Bells, Home Alone, Miracle on 42 Street, and the typical shopping frenzy we can feel as hollow of Christmas spirit as a pumpkin. Our hope is that you will find yourself touched by the spirit of the season and filled with hope love and joy.
The very best Christmas to you and yours from Stephen and I.