The first Christmas was one for history. God became a human and was born in an animal enclosure. Don’t try to explain anything away, just marvel at it all.
Ten years ago God called me to write for Him. It was an answer to my heart-felt prayer to be used by Him. I didn’t know how He would answer that prayer or if He would. I’d been praying that prayer practically my whole life.
The stories poured out of me in a way I’d never experienced. Then the blog began on my 50th birthday. Seven years ago I wrote a series of blog posts that incorporated biblical fiction into a devotional. I now have a book I’m shopping around to see if a publisher will pick it up. So far none has caught the desire to do such, but in God’s time it will be done.
In the meantime I’ve decided to share with you the narrative part of Joseph and Mary’s journey beginning with their entrance into Bethlehem and into the stable. Let’s call it The Christmas Birth.
“Let’s go this way.” Joseph’s arm over Mary’s shoulder pulled
her onto the smaller trail heading to their right.
“Are you sure about this? This isn’t the usual way to
Jerusalem, and Bethlehem is south of there.”
“I know where we’re going. I’ve been this way before. It’s
a lot shorter route through Samaria. It’s better than crossing
the Jordan twice. I don’t want to risk you falling in the water.
You let me know whenever you need to rest. We’ll stop as
often as we need you to.”
Mary looked into his eyes. “How did I ever make it to
Judea and back without you?”
Joseph looked into her smiling eyes, then he smiled.
“You weren’t as far along in your pregnancy then. God was
obviously with you. That was pure foolishness on your part.”
“Is God any less with me now?”
“Of course not, if anything He’s more…wait a minute,
that’s not possible.”
Mary resisted the urge to give her husband a hug. “Besides,
I traveled with a group of people for safety. I knew what I
was doing.”
Joseph held her hand. “Well, I’m the only one standing by
you now. That’s a heavy responsibility.”
Mary hugged his arm. “God knew you were the exact man
I need for this journey. I could use a break soon.”
Joseph pointed ahead. “Can you make it to that rock?”
“You are so sweet. Of course I can make it to that rock ten
steps away.”
************
Joseph approached the door of the house he was sure his
parents would be in. The knock was answered by his father.
“I didn’t expect you two for a couple more days. How did you
get here so soon?”
“We took the direct road through Samaria.”
“Samaria! You know those people can’t be trusted. What
were you thinking?”
Joseph took a step toward the door. “Those people have
been nothing but kind and generous to us, nothing like my
family. One of them even let Mary ride their donkey for half
a day while we traveled in the same direction. I’m pretty sure
they went out of their way to let us go as far as they could. I
could have bought that donkey for next to nothing if I had
any money, but nobody in Nazareth would even let me touch
their stuff so I could have any money.”
He took a long breath. “Look, we’re just looking for a
place to stay. The boy could come any day now.”
His father pulled the door half-shut. “There you go again.
There’s no way you can know that baby is a boy. I’m sorry,
there’s no room here.”
The door slammed shut.
Joseph stared at the door a few seconds. When he turned
around, Mary had a pained expression. “Are you all right?”
She nodded. “Let’s try my family. Abba may have settled
down by now.”
Mary’s dad did open that door. Joseph tried to reason with
him. “Look, your grandson could be born any day now. Can
you make room for us until the birth at least?”
The door slammed shut.
Joseph turned around to find Mary looking at her feet.
Joseph saw the puddle. “What’s happening?”
“My water just broke.”
“What’s that mean?”
“We don’t have days…more like hours.” A contraction hit,
she grabbed his sleeve and bent over. “Maybe…”
Joseph looked up. “Is there any place we can go to get out
of the weather at least?”
A voice came from inside the house. “Try the stable. That’s
where mongrels deserve to be born.”
************
“Let’s use this one. It goes back in farther than the rest of
them do.” Joseph held Mary’s arm as they walked into the
stable. “I can’t believe this is where God planned for His Son
to be born. He deserves better than this…much better.”
“We have no other choice. There’s not much time and
nobody’s letting us in their home.” Mary leaned against
the manger.
Joseph took the wool blanket and started unfolding it.
Mary put her hand up. “No…” A contraction hit. “No!”
He ran next to her placing the blanket in the manger. “Is
there anything I can do?”
Mary placed her hand on the blanket as the pain stopped.
“Leave the blanket here. If we use that on the floor it’ll be
ruined. Whatever we use will be too bloody to be saved.”
Joseph looked around for anything that could be used.
A man walked in with a torch and a jug of water. “Here,
you could use these.” He placed the jug on the floor.
Joseph took the light. “Thank you.” He stuck it in the
holder on the wall. When he turned back to say more to the
man he was gone.
Another contraction brought him next to his wife. This
one lasted twice as long.
Joseph kept looking around at the mess in the stable.
“Where do you think would be the best place to do this?”
Mary pointed to the back. “Over on that ramped area is
almost ideal, except that it’s rock. It’s about the cleanest place
in here too.”
“Okay.” Joseph took his outer cloak off and laid it there.
Mary smiled at him. “Aren’t you going to get cold?”
“You need it more than I do. I’ll survive.”
Mary walked over to Joseph’s cloak. She turned around
before she lay down and grabbed her clothes as low as she
could reach. As she stood up, her legs were being exposed.
Joseph’s eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
She glanced at him while she pulled upward. “Look, I
know this is awkward, but you’re all I’ve got now. These are
the only clothes I have. I’m trying to keep them out of the
way and as clean as possible. I need your help here.”
Joseph swallowed. “Okay. Let me double that back behind
you, then. That’ll give you some cushioning from that rock.”
“Thank you.”
Joseph looked in her eyes as Mary lay down. “How’s that?”
“It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.”
Joseph wrapped his arms around himself. “I just wish I
could put a door on this place to keep the night chill out.”
Mary’s longest contraction yet seized her. When the pain
subsided, she pointed at the opening. “Joseph, look.”
When he turned around, he saw four donkeys lying down.
Each one had two goats lying on top of them. Behind them
stood three cows shoulder to hind leg. Chickens were flying
up and roosting on their backs. The heat emanating from
their bodies chased the chill from the stable.
When he turned back, Mary said, “So do you still think
God isn’t with us?”
Joseph shook his head.
Mary’s final contraction set in then the Messiah voiced His first cry.
Mary coached Joseph on how to clean the baby, tie and cut
the umbilical cord, and carry out the other necessary cleaning.
She pulled her shirt down over her shoulder and brought the
Savior of the world up for His first human meal.
She smiled as she saw Joseph’s red cheeks. “You’re the best
midwife/husband a girl could ask for.”
Joseph stared at her. “I hope I never have to do that again.”
************
As Mary felt the infant at her breast fall asleep she carefully
rolled Him over and wrapped Jesus in the simple cloth she
had. The animals at the stable’s entrance left.
Joseph formed a pocket with the wool blanket in the
manger. “Too bad we couldn’t bring the crib I made. I spent a
lot of time on that thing.”
Mary looked into Joseph’s eyes as she handed Jesus to
him. “It’s the best crib in the world. You know there was no
way we could get that here in one piece. We would’ve needed
a camel for that.”
Joseph laid Jesus in the manger and stepped back. “He
looks so normal. Are you sure He’s the Messiah?”
He snapped around to the front of the stable at the sound
of scuffing feet and heavy breathing. The smell of sheep and
human sweat soon filled his nostrils.
One of the men tapped the other on the arm with the
back of his hand, then he pointed at the baby. “There He is!
Just like the angel said…lying in a manger, wrapped in cloth.”
“Angel?” Mary and Joseph replied in unison.
“Yeah, the sky was full of ‘em. Lit up the night sky like it
was midday.” The second shepherd looked at Joseph. “May we
come in for a closer look?”
“Of course…” Joseph stepped to the back of the manger.
The men stepped up to the manger quietly and stared.
Mary wiped tears from her eyes. She gazed out at the eastern
sky. The familiar bright morning star hung over the horizon.
Joseph broke the silence. “What, exactly, did the angel, or
angels, say? By the way, my name is Joseph. This is my wife,
Mary.”
Just then three other men appeared at the entrance. “Did
you find Him?”
The first two men turned around. “Shh! He’s sleeping”
They motioned for their comrades to come in.
The first shepherd looked at Joseph. “So the child’s name
is Joseph?”
Joseph shook his head. “No, His name is Jesus. That’s what
the angel told me to call Him.”
“Joshua…so it is true.” The second shepherd placed his
hands on Joseph’s arm. “The angel started with, ‘Don’t
be afraid…’”
The youngest man spoke up. “He obviously didn’t know
who he was talking to. Shepherds have to fight off lions and
bears. Just like King David did.”
“What would you know of bravery?” One of the others
slapped his friend on the shoulder. “You jump every time an
olive hits the ground.”
The shepherds all laughed. Joseph put his finger in front of
his mouth. “Shhh…”
Everybody looked at the infant. Jesus put His thumb in
His mouth and sucked. He never opened His eyes.
The storyteller glanced at Mary, then back at Joseph as he
continued his report, “‘I’m bringing the most joyous news to
everybody in the world. Today, in the city of David a Savior
is born. He is Christ the Lord. As proof, you will find Him
lying in a manger wrapped in simple cloth.’ That’s when the
whole sky filled with angels.”
“Yeah, and Mr. I-ain’t-afraid-of-nothin’ tripped over his
own ewe lamb. Landed flat on his back.” Everybody chuckled.
The storyteller continued, “It looked like those angels
had been waiting a long time for this moment. They were all
dancing around praising God. They said, ‘Glory to God in the
highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men.’ I thought
everybody in town would wake up from the commotion. I
looked around and noticed the sheep were all calm, some
were still asleep. That’s when I knew this was just for us to
hear. I looked back at a starry sky. As quickly as they came,
they left us.”
Joseph looked from the shepherds to Mary. Her eyes were
half-shut. She must be so exhausted. How can I get these guys to
leave so she can get some sleep?
A rooster crowed at the edge of town.
The youngest shepherd looked at his friends. “I don’t know
about you guys, but I just got to go tell somebody about this.
The town’s waking up now, let’s go spread the news.”
“Yeah, let’s go.” They all left the stable.
Mary looked up at Joseph and smiled. “Do you still doubt
who that is in the manger?”
Joseph came over to her and tucked a blanket around her
shoulders. He lay next to her. “I never doubted that part. It’s
just that I never pictured the Messiah being so helpless. I
always heard of Him being the conquering monarch, not a
tiny baby. But I guess we all start out like that, there’s no
other way.”
Mary’s slow rhythmic breathing told him she was
already asleep.
************
Joseph jerked awake. He was surprised to see a woman
standing at the manger examining Jesus.
He slipped his arm out from around Mary and walked to
the manger. “Excuse me, but who are you?”
The woman’s head snapped his direction. “I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to wake you. I’m a midwife. Did you tie this cord off?”
Joseph studied her kind eyes. “Yeah, there wasn’t anyone to
help us. We had no choice.”
She placed a hand on his arm. “You must teach me this
knot. I can’t get it to tuck in as well as you did.”
Joseph smiled. “I may not know as many knots as the Galilee
fishermen, but we carpenters have a few knots of our own.”
“You have a beautiful son.”
“Thank you, but actually, He’s not my…”
“Esther?” Mary sat up.
Esther came over to her. “Mary, I wish somebody had told
me you were here. I would have loved to help you deliver your
beautiful boy.”
Mary accepted her hug. “Joseph, this is Esther. She
delivered Aunt Elizabeth’s son.”
Esther smiled. “I’m surprised the old woman survived the
ordeal. God truly showed her favor. She has a special son,
indeed.”
Mary nodded. “Yes, very special…”
Esther got on her knees in front of Mary. “If you will
excuse us, Joseph, I must examine your wife now.”
Mary pulled her clothes up. “It’s okay, he can stay. I don’t
have anything to hide from him.”
Joseph stood at the manger with his back to them. “You
two do whatever you have to do. I’ll keep an eye on Jesus here.”
Esther’s back straightened up. “Did you say the boy’s
name is Jesus?”
Mary looked at her. “Yes, He’s the One John is to be the
forerunner for.”
Esther sat back, her face turned pale. Joseph came over
and placed an arm behind her.
Esther looked up at Joseph. “So you mean…”
Joseph smiled. “He is Emmanuel, God with us. The long awaited
Messiah has come.”
Esther’s mouth dropped open.
Mary leaned forward and placed a hand on Esther’s arm.
“Take as much time as you need to let the wonder of it all sink
in. You can tell everybody you were there for both births.”
Esther looked around. “But why in a stable?”
Joseph shrugged. “I don’t know, but it is what it is.”
Mary smiled when she saw another woman approaching.
She held a hand out. “Joseph, help me up.”
Joseph came behind her, put his hands under her arms,
and lifted her to her feet.
Mary took two cautious steps to the entrance. She held
her arms out while looking behind the woman. “Momma…
where’s Abba?”
Her mother gave her a huge hug. “He’s at the house still
insisting that this isn’t his grandchild. I told him it came from
his daughter’s body, so it’s his. But he won’t have any of it. So
is it a boy like you said it would be?”
Mary pointed to the manger. “Have a look at your grandson.”
The two women were joined by Esther at the manger.
The three of them fussed over the newborn while Joseph
welcomed more visitors.
