Love Makes Room
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. Come just as you are, bringing whatever is on your heart today. Take a few moments and allow yourself to just be. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. Allow yourself to be present in this moment.
Consider how, in the midst of a world too full, the love of God finds room in a humble stable.
In each heart lies a Bethlehem, an inn where we must ultimately answer whether there is room or not. When we are Bethlehem-bound, we experience our own advent in his. When we are Bethlehem-bound, we can no longer look the other way conveniently not seeing stars; not hearing angel voices…This Advent let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that the Lord has made known to us…This Advent, let’s go to Bethlehem and find our kneeling places.
— Ann Weems, “In Search of Our Kneeling Places”
Luke 2.1-7
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no place in the guest room.
Food for Thought
Today marks the first day of Christmas week! For some of us, this day brings a twinge of panic—there are still presents to buy, errands to run, meals to prepare, and stockings to stuff. For others, it sparks excitement as we inch closer to Christmas Day. It is the time for gathering with loved ones, eating holiday treats, singing carols that linger in our hearts, sitting by the fire, passing out stockings, and sharing treasured family stories.
But amid all this hustle and bustle, don’t we find ourselves longing for something more? In a season where we rush from one obligation to the next, we yearn for connection. Amid the noise of to-do lists and expectations, we crave peace. As our thoughts swirl with gift lists and recipes, we find ourselves longing for deeper meaning.
And yet, in the midst of this longing, the "No Vacancy" sign seems to glow brightly—both within us and all around us. There’s no room left in our bank accounts after buying all the presents. There’s no room left on the calendar for another gathering. We find ourselves with no space left to give or to receive anything more.
Perhaps, then, it’s the right time to remember the story of a weary, tired couple making their way to Bethlehem. Pregnant with the world’s hope, Mary and Joseph arrived in a city bustling with visitors, busy and overflowing with activity in the midst of a census. As they searched for a place to rest—a place where Mary might give birth to her child—they were met with the same refrain we so often feel today: "There’s no room."
In this week of Christmas, we who are "Bethlehem-bound" might ask ourselves: where have our lives become too full? What has taken up space in our hearts that shouldn’t? To what have we given too little space? As we prepare to behold the face of God wrapped in swaddling clothes, perhaps it’s time to pause and ask: how can we make room in our lives for something—or someone—holy?
On that first Christmas, the inns were full, the streets were crowded, and the world was busy with activity. It had no space for this holy family. And yet, in the midst of this too-full world, love made room. Love made room in a humble stable for sanctuary and rest. Love made room in a star-lit sky for angelic songs and alleluias. Love made room in the hearts of two parents to nurture and guide. Love made room in this newborn child to know our tears and hunger, our despair and hope, our laughter and gratitude—to be Emmanuel, God with us.
Love was born into a noisy, crowded world, and it was never the same. Where there seemed to be no room, love made room. It reminds us that even the smallest, humblest space can bear witness to something holy.
Love made room then, and it can make room now. Who knows how we might be changed—how the world might be changed—if we made room for the love of God in the most ordinary, mundane, or difficult parts of our lives?
This Christmas, may love make room again as it did in that Bethlehem stable so long ago. May it find space in the midst of our too-full lives, in the cries of neighbors who are hurting, in the work of healing our communities, and in the yearning for peace in a troubled world. This week, as we meet again this Christ child, may we also meet the love that makes room and changes everything.
Practice making room for love this week. It can be easy to lose ourselves in the hurry of our Christmas preparations. This week, designate a space in life—a room in your home, your car, your front porch—to be a place you can go to step away and reflect on the love and true meaning of this season.
The holidays are upon us and maybe you are finding yourself slightly nervous. It can be hard to know how to navigate or approach all that might divide us if brought up in conversation. To help our readers navigate this season, our team created a short resource to provide you with Five Things to Remember When Setting a Welcome Table for the Holidays! We hope it will help you set a welcoming space before your guests even arrive!
For a printable version of today's reflection Click Here!
Blessing
Loving God,
In the busyness of this season and our lives, open our hearts to the in-breaking of your love. May your love make room in our hearts for your hope. Make room in our lives for your peace. Make room in our lives for your joy. Teach us not only how to make room for you, but how to make room for one another. Amen.
A little Table Talk for your table...
Where in your life do you feel there is "no room"?
What has taken up space in your life? What have you given too little space? How could you begin to reprioritize things?
How have you experienced God making room for you in seasons when you felt there was no room left?
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
How do you think Mary and Joseph felt when they were told there was no room for them?
What do you think it means to "make room" for someone? How can we do that for others?
Is there something you could share with someone this Christmas to make them feel loved?
Meet This Week’s Writer!
Lin Story-Bunce is a North Carolina native and lovingly calls Greensboro, NC home. She earned a Masters of Divinity from Wake Forest University and has served a wonderful and thoughtful congregation at College Park Baptist Church since 2009, pastoring to families and their faith development. Most of all, Lin loves the moments she gets to connect with her family, snowboarding with her wife, and keeping up with their four kiddos and two energetic pups. Lin is a teacher, preacher, dreamer, and procrastinator who has a knack for trying to do way too many things in far too little time.
To hear more from Lin throughout the week, follow along on our Instagram!