Housing During Hard Times

   Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help. (Isaiah 58:7, New Living Translation)

As you all know, when Joseph and Mary finally arrived in Bethlehem, shortly before she was due to deliver, there was “no room at the inn”. I think – I hope – many of us realize that doesn’t mean what we used to think it means. That “inn” was probably the inner room or guest room, which was already occupied by guests. So, the owner of the home put Mary and Joseph up in the just-as-comfortable lower level where the animals were usually kept. I just read an article that hypothesized that when the pregnant Mary was ready to deliver, that the animals were probably removed. I hadn’t thought of that until now, but it makes sense.

   And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:7, New King James Version)

But here we are in 2020 and other than this being the Christmas story, how do these events relate to where we are right now.

Have you invited anyone over lately? Other than maybe your closest and most trusted friends and relatives? Did you have a bunch of people over for Thanksgiving? Planning on having a house party over the Christmas holiday? No, I hope not. We are still in the midst of a pandemic, so you better not have guests in your house.

Hospitality was a vital part of the Middle Eastern culture during Jesus’s life, and it still is. Here in America, I don’t know that we have ever been as welcoming to strangers, but if we have the room, we invite people over to spend the night, don’t we? Not right now we don’t.

Which is so sad. We need human contact. It’s one of our most vital needs, after food, water and oxygen.

So what are we supposed to do when a pandemic keeps us apart? Call, e-mail, text, mail out Christmas cards – I know, people have been cutting back on sending cards in recent years, but maybe this year it would be a good idea. No matter what you do, don’t feel that you have been turned out in the cold, with no place to lay your head. Reach out. There is room in someone’s home, if not physically, then emotionally.

Lord, God, just like you got Mary and Joseph to a place of warmth and safety, get us through this pandemic and back to times when we can gather together in love. Amen.  

Outside of the nursing home we visited in Ayacucho, Peru in 2009.