Been to Bethlehem? An Advent Devotional

Over the past two years, I have shared with Easin’ Along readers two devotionals (click here and here) that I wrote for an Advent Devotional handbook given to members of our church. Our church did not publish a handbook this year, but my intention was to prepare a devotional anyway. I spent some time thinking about the subject matter around Thanksgiving but never could settle on a topic. My frustration continued until this week.

 A few days ago, I received our church newsletter which contained a very timely message written by our interim minister, Dr. Steve Eason. Dr. Eason is not only an exceptionally gifted speaker, but he is also an excellent writer, and his message spoke to me as someone who, at times, finds Christmas overwhelming. I asked Dr. Eason if I could reprint his message on Easin’ Along. He graciously consented, and his words are printed below.  Please read on because I am certain that, if things get a bit stressful over the holidays, his message will help bring into focus the reason for the season.

Grotto of the Nativity

You ever been to Bethlehem?

Some of you have. Underneath the Church of the Nativity is a grotto where early Christians claimed Christ was born. It’s a stone cave that would have been underneath a home. Animals would have been bedded there for the winter. It’s now a holy place. There’s a fourteen-point star on the floor that marks the spot where the Manger would have been. You can place your hand in a hole in the middle of that star and touch the stone where some claim this historical event occurred. Whether it did, or whether it didn’t, it’s a good place to remember.

There’s obviously a lot going on as we gear up to celebrate Christmas. Parties, concerts, parades, shopping, decorating, baking, travel, church, family, traditions, ending a semester, wrapping up the old year and preparing for a new one. All of that is happening at the same time. Holiday fatigue!

Then I think of that grotto, the oldest site of worship in Christianity. Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Armenians, Coptics, Protestants….we all trace our heritage to that site. God did something there, on that spot, in real time, in a real place. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.” (2 Cor. 5:19)

We can’t all go to Bethlehem. The important thing is that God went there in Christ. Everything was born there! Our salvation, our reconciliation with God, our hope, the gift of eternal life were all born there on that spot in Christ.

While all these other things are going on, I want to go back to Bethlehem in my mind and in my heart. I want to touch that stone and remember what happened there, in a simple cave, in a simple village, with simple people and an extraordinary God!

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem! Come, and behold Him, Born the King of angels! O come let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord! (John Francis Wade, “O Come, All Ye Faithful”)

About the author:

Dr. Eason received a B.A. from East Carolina University in 1976, M. Div. from Duke Divinity School in 1979 and D. Min. from Columbia Theological Seminary in 1993. He was ordained in the United Methodist Church in 1980 and transferred to the PCUSA in 1984. He has served as pastor/head of staff at churches of different sizes and his longest tenure was from 2002-2015 at Myers Park Presbyterian in Charlotte, NC which has a membership of approximately 4800. He left Myers Park voluntarily to pursue ministries “outside of his comfort zone” and spent a year as a church consultant with Macedonian Ministries, Atlanta GA during which he traveled the country working with churches to help them with a wide range of challenges. He now serves as an interim pastor at Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church, Knoxville, Tennessee.

Helen (adorable wife) joins me in sending a sincere wish that your holidays are filled with love, joy, happiness, and peace. We’re Easin’ Along now…with one hand holding a shopping list and the thought of the other hand reaching into that hole.