Nativity

I love nativity scenes! We have several. I sort of collect them. We have porcelain, plastic, Little Tykes, one that Avon used to make, a nativity Advent calendar (actually two!), a handmade fabric set sewn by my Mom, one I inherited from my grandma and even a hinged stable that when you open it, you see all of the people inside. At after-Christmas sales, nativities are the first thing I'm looking for.

A long time ago, I read a story by a woman that also collected nativity scenes and her family kept a different one out all year just to remember Christmas every day. I thought that was a good idea, so ever since, I've done the same thing.

But what is it that fascinates me so about these little scenes? I mean, they're cute but it's not like any of ours are worth money. Several of the kid-friendly ones have even been slobbered on numerous times over the years. And although this word has come to mean almost exclusively "the birth of Christ"...it's actually meaning is simply, birth.

No, I don't think it's the monetary value or the cuteness or even any emotional or historical sentiment...rather I think it's something...more. After all, I've never been known to be a sentimental person. I think, for me, it's the reminder that no matter how cute we dress up the stable with shiny halos on the holy family or beams of light shining down (like the photo above)...the simple fact is that the Creator of the universe entered into the human existence the same way we all do...a bloody, wet, crying mess. But He went even further.

He was born to a woman whose fidelity and morals would undoubtedly always be questioned. If you don't believe this, there are...2000 years later, still people who question whether she truly was a virgin or not. He also timed it perfectly so that there could never be naysayers who said, "Well, His life was easy because He was born into...(insert your own words here)". No, I can't think of a more humble birth than arriving on a floor strewn with hay and animal feces.

If you're someone who likes to paint a pretty picture of Jesus, I apologize, because I've probably offended you. But I'd also like to challenge you to think along these lines for a little while. What if He'd been born any other way? Would the deeply impoverished, the orphan, the single mom, the hated and despised ever have believed the Savior could love and understand their plight? Probably not.

Just in case you think I'm making too much out of this...because we want to protect our delicate sensibilities...don't listen to my words...listen to God's:

"(Jesus), although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death even death on a cross." (Phil. 2:6-8)
"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich." (2 Cor. 8:9)

So the next time you see a Nativity scene, enjoy the beauty, delight in the wonder, tell your kids the story of Jesus...but also take a moment to imagine the dirt...imagine the smell...imagine the cold...imagine the loneliness...and take another moment to thank your Abba who loves you so much that He was willing to humble Himself...for you!