"Is there room in Your heart for Me?"
I immediately think of innkeepers. I think of a house in Bethlehem where travelers once lodged, where no room was found when the time came for Jesus to be born.
Christ is in my heart; this I know. But sometimes I wonder. Am I providing a place of welcome and adoration? Or could it be that I've allowed my heart to become cluttered with so many other things that I have little room in my life for Christ Himself.
The inn in Bethlehem was not filled with "bad" people on the night Mary and Joseph arrived seeking shelter. It had no room for the holy family only because others had gotten there first.
Does Jesus find little space in some of my days simply because the hours fill up with everything else first?
Do I get up in the morning and put off prayer until I get one thing accomplished, and then one more thing - and do I ever find that the day has sped by without my spending any time at all in communication with God? I am deeply ashamed to admit that more often than I care to mention, this has been the case.
My heart seems, today, like a manger filled with clutter. Sometimes it's as if there's no room in it for the most important Person in the universe. Just imagine the "logic" of that. And so I come today to Jesus, asking HIM to clear out all the distractions. I ask our Blessed Mother, who so tenderly prepared a place for Jesus, to help prepare my heart to be a fitting refuge for my Lord. May she re-arrange my priorities as one might arrange pieces of straw in a manger.
As my Christmas gift this year, I ask that the same be done for you. I ask that all our hearts be prepared as places of loving refuge for the King and Messiah Whose birth we are about to celebrate.
The world did not welcome Him when He came to earth as an infant; it does not welcome Him still. You and I have the opportunity of welcoming Him in a world that does not do so.
May our hearts prepare Him room.
This post is a slightly edited version of one first published on The Cloistered Heart blog in December, 2011.
Yes, I am guilty of putting off all my prayers until late at night when I am too sleepy to really think and meditate clearly! There is a voice that keeps saying, "start your day with ME!"
ReplyDeleteSo you understand the struggle :)! Thank you, Monica.
DeleteI find that finals week in homeschooling can be so stressful, a time when I should be praying more. But I don't. At least not when I am wide awake. With today be the last day of the semester, I am excited to gear up for more prayer time. Isn't it amazing that He is never too busy for us?
ReplyDeleteYes, it is amazing and wonderful that He's never too busy for us! And I am sure He understands our stresses too ;).
DeleteNancy, thank you for expressing so well what I too struggle with everyday. It's especially difficult during this busy time of the year. Sometimes I wonder what the Saints of old would do if they lived today amidst all the noise and distraction. I'm sure they would know how to handle it. I wish I did. Seeing all the rejection of Our Lord out there as we approach His birth, I think more than ever He "needs" our love and our company. Thank you for the beautiful reminder. At least I can try again...tonight. He is so good...so patient. Let's keep each other in prayer for this intention. God bless you!
ReplyDeleteOh, how wonderful to keep each other in prayer for this, Patricia... thank you! I agree that He "needs" our love, in this world where He is so forgotten and even mocked. I will try again.... tonight (I love remembering that I can always, always DO that).
DeleteNancy,
ReplyDeleteI am using an examination of conscience every evening that finishes with, " Ask God for what you need to follow Him more closely." Of course my mind goes blank at this point though I am aware I need so much.
"I ask our Blessed Mother, who so tenderly prepared a place for Jesus, to help prepare my heart to be a fitting refuge for my Lord. May she re-arrange my priorities as one might arrange pieces of straw in a manger." Oh this is such a good pace to start. Thank you!
And thank YOU, Sue! I love the reminder to ask God for what we need to follow Him more closely, for to do so is our greatest need of all. I hope you're having a holy Advent!
DeleteSo much about the American Christmas scene leaves me cold. It almost feels like I'm tossing all of it out of my mind, including the Christ Child, just because He's gotten Himself tangled in the earthly mess--as He is wont to do. The only thing that reaches me is the concept of "making Him room". And the only way I can think of to express that in my life is to get rid of things. Advent is a great home-purging season for me!
ReplyDeleteJamie, you've made a striking point about the Christ Child getting tangled in the earthly mess. Very striking, indeed. Thank you.
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