At Home with God

Christmas has been commercialized: decorations, lights and cards that have little to do with the real meaning of Christmas and can all serve as a distraction from Jesus. Deuteronomy 11:18-20 says that we are to constantly teach children and talk to them about Jesus throughout the whole year and it instructs us to write these things on door frames of your houses. Our homes should be the centre piece of faith development. Christmas time is a time when we should be more intentional so faith is not buried under the wrapping of Christmas. So here are seven thoughts, in no particular order, about how to do this.   1.  Be intentional about keeping Jesus centre. The main thing is to keep the main thing as the main thing. Build into your Christmas routine things that intentionally keep Jesus at the centre. Plan both in the time of advent and on Christmas day itself to keep definite signposts to Jesus. You would not have a birthday party where the celebrant is ignored by all, inst...

So Jesus was born in a stable because there was no room in the inn. The little town of Bethlehem could find nowhere for this young couple. This is the story our children will act out in nativity plays across our nation. The angry innkeeper with the synthetic beard shouting “Go away” as he slams the door in the face of the young couple. (Usually ‘Mary’ has a cushion shoved up her jumper for special effects). But it’s not what really happened. Earlier this year I had the privilege of going to Lebanon and meeting some of the most hospitable people on this planet. Middle Eastern culture would not reject a pregnant lady and expect her to stay on the streets to give birth. Not only that, but Joseph was also a descendant of David. He would have been in a celebrity in Bethlehem, David’s town, where some distant relatives would still have lived. When it says there was no room in the inn, the word for inn is  katalyma . This is the same word that was used for the place where Jesus...