The Innkeeper of Our Hearts

There’s no room in the inn. When we think about the Christmas story, sometimes we can’t help but think about the innkeeper who told Mary and Joseph that there was no room for them. What’s interesting is we’re never told that there was an innkeeper; we just assume that there had to be.

We think about Mary and Joseph standing outside—knocking on the door, hoping to find some place of rest—but there must have been an innkeeper who tells them there are no more rooms.

We might think, “How rude. Surely there must have been some room.”

If the innkeeper had known who was standing before him—if he had realized that the woman outside the door was carrying the Savior of the world who would one day bleed on a cross for him, the man most likely would’ve found some space for them. Perhaps he would’ve been so moved that’d he’d have given up his own room. But he didn’t know that this young couple were the chosen parents of Christ. He missed it because he was ignorant. Unaware.

But we know the story—we know that Jesus would come and die. So, the question we must now ask is: how much room do we give Him? If we think of our hearts like an inn, or a house, and we are the innkeepers of our hearts—how much room do we give Jesus?

Is He the centerpiece of our homes or is He stashed in a closet? Unlike the innkeeper, we know the story of Jesus, yet too often we barely make room for Him to reside in our hearts.

Perhaps it is time for us to rearrange, remove, and reprioritize. Maybe it’s time for us to sweep up, clean house, and invite Jesus to be our priority. Do we leave space for Him in our decision making? In our finances? In our parenting, friendships, and workplaces? He’s not meant to be stuffed into a corner. He wants to fill every room, every nook, and every cranny with His presence.

When Jesus is at the center of your home, everything is as it should be.
Will you make room for Him?