Lack of space for Jesus, was lack of space for God in the heart of the people. It stands for this Christmas too.

We, as believers, are once again being fondly invited to the banquet-table of a Redemptive Incarnation and in the garden of our heart there unfolds, like the fragrant December Lilies, a full bunch of reminiscences of this historic event. As we engage ourselves in creating cribs, setting star-lights, lining up, in newly sewn attires holding burning candles, at the church-courtyard for the midnight-holy ceremonies and preparing delicious edibles, let us pause a while and ask ourselves:

Is there a little space available, in our heart, for the Baby Jesus?

The effulgent flame of the Blessed Birth of the Lord is one that throws beams of light upon contradictions of manifold kind. We, fragile humans, can only stand amazed at each of them: the’ Millionaire-God’ becomes a ‘bankrupt-human’!; the Sacred One assumes the form of a profane transgressor!; the sole Sustainer of the entire universe, renouncing the riches above, takes birth in a mere manger!; the Son of God becomes the Servant of servants!, and above all, as the Gospel testifies, the First-born Son of the Creator-God is deprived of a little space to be born in, even in an inn (Lk. 2:7).

Bethlehem, that day, was exceptionally noisy with the preparations for Census. Roads and rest-houses grew overcrowded. No one there wished to be a host to another. Everyone had amply rehearsed to pretend to be a stranger to the other. Was it not for the same reason that Joseph, a poor country carpenter and Mary, his expecting and weary wife were left orphans there at that chill nightfall? Yet, disregarding the scorching sorrows ruthlessly offered by each of the slammed doors and sour-soaked insults, they moved ahead through those busy streets, looking for a square-foot of soil for the Nazarene.

But, neither a mansion nor a decent dwelling, on the surface of the earth, was set apart for Him, the Lord of the land, the seas and the skies! The Saviour-God, hence, was born on a grass-mattress in a manger! No door lay wide open for Him who came as the WAY; no inn gifted a little space to Him who was born as the TRUTH, and no emperors or mobs marched up to shout praises to Him who flushed forth as the Fountain of everlasting LIFE! There was lack of space for God. Blessed, of course, were those simple shepherds on the hillside to whom was given the fortune to worship the new-born Child and those breezes and stars in the sky that lulled Him to slumber in that snowy yet holy night!

The dark world of ours, today, is busy with scripting the screenplay of haste and hurry. People of the present generation prefer to settle themselves on the shore of the turbulent ocean of haste. The earth-dwellers, to a great extent, caught in the octopus grip of a deadly consumerist culture that degrades parents as obsessions, kith and kin as booms, relatives as abominable liabilities and neighbours as ill-omens, seem to be growing excessively fond of playing what one may call ‘dumb-dances’. The farther the human race advances in the spheres of science and technology, the less it becomes aware of its rapidly shrinking noble values and virtues.

Today our relationship with one another is minimized to mere phone-calls; acquaintances vanish at the flash of short smiles and conversations hide themselves behind occasional head-nods! We no more have either space or time at our disposal to host and accommodate our own near and dear ones in the inn of our lives. The twenty-four hours of a full day and night seem to be insufficient for the varying and hectic transactions of our daily living. Children of the present often stand empty of mindfulness and filial affection to look after and light up the setting days of their aging parents who brought them to sunshine and toiled hard to provide for them. A good majority of us is enslaved by our insensitive senses that ignore and take pleasure even, in the mishaps at our neighbourhoods.

There, of course, prevailed a time when our handkerchief remained soaked in the overflowing tears of our sorrowing fellow beings; a time when our hands grew stronger to help those drowning in the whirlpool of misfortune to get out of it; a time when our little huts were spacious enough to render asylum to one more homeless lot, and a time when the crops of compassion and care got heaped up in abundance in the granary of our heart! But how different are this world and its residents! Noble values are demoted; broadmindedness is as rare as precious gems; faith-life grows shallower; face of the earth looks deformed and the wicks of mercy in human eyes begin to flicker and die out!

People love to be content within their well­locked glasshouses built in isolated islands. Many of us, regularly humiliating and avoiding the empty hands and swollen eyes of the abandoned and poor, choose to conveniently take a different route. Narrow and shadowy corridors are very often our choices. The fast-multiplying epidemics and unexpected natural disasters pin at the pleasure, comforts and tranquility of every one without distinction. Financial crises and irregular seasons, with the havocs and miseries they breed, constantly keep pulling people forcefully into the sea-bed of uncertainties and anxieties.

It is amidst the over-influence of these uncommon phenomena that we prepare ourselves, in spirit and gaiety, for the nearing Christmas. If so, it’s an occasion for us to objectively examine our words, deeds and thoughts in both the resonance of our conscience and the lime­light of truth. Do we have space for God? Let us learn serious lessons from our faults and falls, generously amend our wrongs and debilities, throw the entrance of our heart broad open for the Lord who waits outside knocking (Rev. 3:20), and re-own a fleshy heart that will ever grow sensitive enough to love and help our fellow brothers and sisters.

May the One, who sanctified the manger at Bethlehem and turned water into wine at Cana, be born in the little cradle of our heart. Then, with Him, we too will be reborn as renewed creations full of finer virtues and holiness and consequently, the Feast of Incarnation will continue to remain an indelibly personal experience in the very core of our being throughout the days to come.

- – - written by Fr. Thomas Pattathilchira, CMF

As we are in an age of mobile phones and email messages, Christmas cards lost their significance. Even those available are conveying messages that are unfit for Christmas.

But I was very much interested in a message I received through a Christmas card last year. It reads thus; “God would send us a scholar if our need was of knowledge. If the world had required scientific inventions, God would send us a scientist. If it was of wealth, He would send us an economist. But as our greatest need was of forgiveness of sins, God sent us a redeemer.”

‘A savior, Lord Jesus Christ, is born for you in the town of David’, this was the message given by the angels to the shepherds. Simon, filled with the Holy Spirit announced thus; ‘my eyes have seen the salvation prepared for the whole nations.’ The shepherds found their Saviour in the manger. So they were happy. The magi were filled with joy and they could find the baby in the manger.

But the cribs that are prepared in the Churches and houses today, never fill us with happiness. All have become just routine actions since we are fond of healing, miracles, a flight from the troubles and peripheral joys. If and only our main goal in life becomes the salvation of our souls, the birth of the Saviour can bring us joy.

Those who are unaware of sin may not need a Saviour. Today many looses the joy of accepting a Saviour, because they are unconscious of their sinful lives. The world needs most the forgiveness of sins. As such the World needs Christ. Because He alone is able to impart us the forgiveness of our sins.

The wind of the Holy Spirit must blow all over the world, as He gives repentance and consciousness of sins. We should strengthen the ministries of preaching the Gospel. The believers must pray from the bottom of their heart. A new feast of Pentecost; in it lies the deliverance of the world. Let us pray for this great dream. Thus the joy of Christmas be conveyed all over the nations.

Prayer: Lord, let there be a new feast of Pentecost that the joy of Christmas be felt everywhere. Help us to preach Gospel with all strength and means that all the hearts turn to Christ. Amen.

- – - written by Benny Punnathara

According to the Mayan Calender, December 21st, 2012, is going to be the end of the world. This ancient prediction has been the catalyst for countless popular movies, novels, conspiracy theories, and intellectual debates. Even people who usually don’t put much stock in this type of thing are wondering if we are all about to go the way of the dinosaur.

The 2012 doomsday theory is arguably the most popular of its kind, even surpassing the Y2K scare and the mistaken assumption that life was going to grind to a halt in the year 2000.

Causes for End of the World

The exact cause of the end of the world differs from theorist to theorist. Some believe that a planet named Nibiru (also known as Planet X) is going to crash into earth and wipe everything out. NASA denies the existence of this planet, insisting that we would be able to see it by now in the sky if the theory were true, but proponents of this theory insist that Nibiru is hiding behind the sun.

Other theories include black holes swallowing the earth whole, asteroid collisions that could cause an explosion big enough to destroy all life as we know it, and a super solar flare that may shut down all power on earth or even burn us to a crisp.

Another popular theory is that a pole reversal is going to be our downfall, and many advocates of 2012 theories believe a galactic alignment will herald the beginning of the end for humanity and every other form of life on planet earth.

Please read Undeniable Signs of The End Times

Some authors and speakers in the New Age religion do not think that 2012 will be a time of death and destruction for our planet. Instead, they think it will be a time of spiritual change and great awakening that may even turn out to be a positive thing. However, average folks aren’t too keen on change, and anything that is going to pull them out of their comfortable routines is perceived as a threat, including this New Age theory.

How Your Faith Can Save You

These things can be frightening to think about, but if you are a person of faith you have nothing to worry about. One of the nice things about having faith in something spiritual is that physical events do not have much effect on the outcome of your day one way or the other. Of course, this type of detachment to the physical realm is often easier said than done, but faith in something bigger than ourselves and even this earth can be a comfort to almost anyone in trying times.

While it might be good fun to splurge a bit on expensive items, you don’t want to get yourself into credit card debt or other undesirable predicaments, since it’s likely that December 21st, 2012, will come and go without changing a single thing here on earth.

All throughout history people have been predicting the end of the world, and so far it hasn’t happened. Trust in whatever faith you have that, one way or the other; everything is going to be okay.

About the Author: Kathleen Hubert is a blogger who writes on a variety of different sites. Check out more of her work at LED TV reviews.