My Heart is Bethlehem

Today is the first day of Advent, marking the beginning of the season of expectant waiting for the birth of Jesus as well as for the return of Christ at the Second Coming. Some Christian churches mark the beginning of the Advent season with the hanging of the greens and lighting the first candle of the Advent wreath. I like to ring in the Advent/Christmas season the day after Thanksgiving by listening to Christmas music and decorating the house, although I must confess that I’ve started early this year—I needed it.

My favorite Christmas carol is “Silent Night” and my favorite secular Christmas song is “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” But my favorite contemporary Christmas song is probably not one that you’ll hear on the radio. “My Heart is Bethlehem,” written by Michael James Peterson and recorded by John Berry, beautifully captures the image of a God coming to earth as a child, full of hope and innocence and longing to be loved. Take next four minutes and forty seconds and listen (click on the underlined link above).

Eternity stepped into time and drew a mortal breath,

Mystery so clearly seen, the world could not forget

That in the town of Bethlehem in the most unlikely place,

God the father wore a child’s face.

There’s something in the heart of God,

So purely meek and mild

That finds its best expression in the longings of a child.

For every child’s heart is hungry

To be found and loved and known

By someone who would make their heart a home.

My heart is Bethlehem—I will make room for Him.

This humble dwelling place made worthy by His grace.

This child is still adored

Because He still is born

Deep in the hearts of men,

My heart is Bethlehem.

I wish for you this Christmas Eve,

That you would find true peace.

But silent nights are holy nights

And wonders never cease.

There’s no remembering

The ghost of Christmas past,

For God’s forgiveness finds your heart at last.

My heart is Bethlehem—I will make room for Him.

This humble dwelling place made worthy by His grace.

This child is still adored

Because He still is born

Deep in the hearts of men

To love and not condemn.

My heart is Bethlehem.

What does it look like when your heart opens like the innkeeper’s door? Maybe it looks like sharing a meal with a new neighbor, or making a phone call to that difficult friend or relative when you’d rather not. Or perhaps it means letting go of the grudge you’ve been holding against someone who hurt you, or simply choosing not to complain when you hear the song “Feliz Navidad” for the umpteenth time. Only you can determine how to turn your heart into Bethlehem. This Christmas, I challenge you to open the door of your heart for the Christ Child, just as the innkeeper opened his door for a poor couple who became parents of the child who changed the world.  Let’s all be that innkeeper so that others can see the Christ Child in the way we live our lives. Amen.