Joy To Your World - Children's Advent DevotionalMuestra

Today is the second Sunday of the Advent season. Your church might light the next candle on the wreath, the “Bethlehem” candle. The second candle represents the love that everyone experienced at the manger.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, the city was already full of people. There wasn’t a place for them at the inn. Joseph needed to find a place for his young wife. The innkeeper didn’t have any rooms, so he gave them the best place he could. He might have helped Joseph clean up the stable and fill it with fresh, clean hay. His wife might have brought Mary and Joseph a hot meal. The Bible doesn’t tell us anything except that the innkeeper gave them his stable. Maybe that was the best help he could give. And Mary and Joseph had a safe place to stay.

The chorus of the hymn “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” says “tidings of comfort and joy.” Christmas is a favorite holiday because it is filled with family traditions and a great sense of God’s good will for others. We enjoy Christmas cards that bring holiday wishes from family and friends. We give special gifts to places that want to provide a merry Christmas for people who don’t have enough on their own. It is a joy to give and receive those “tidings of comfort and joy.”

The spirit of Christmas is the spirit of giving. The innkeeper is sometimes portrayed as a man who didn’t give, but that probably isn’t true. The innkeeper gave the best he had, even if that was just his stable. As a result, the innkeeper probably was one of the people that got to see the baby Jesus.

All of us can give something to the people who need our help this Christmas. What is the best you can give? In Advent season, giving is a great way to experience the love people saw inside that stable in Bethlehem.