The Manger

I lay my sleeping baby down in his crib.  His long lashes are half moons atop alabaster skin; his body cradled by clean cotton.

I think of the Christ child.

We are told his first bed was an animal trough.  {Luke 2:7}  The God of the universe, He who designed cashmere and eiderdown and lambswool, lay his head on wood and straw.

In a season where my ministry is laundry piles and stacks of dishes, I cling to the thought of the manger.  I cling to the knowledge that once, an ordinary farmer spent an ordinary day building a trough to feed his livestock.   Little did he know that God would take his labor and make it the very receptacle of Grace.

Image via Jessica Kettle Photography by way of Pinterest

Be near us, Lord Jesus.   We ask you to stay.  Take the labor of our hands and turn it to glory.

†

Advent Music Selection:  Holy, Holy, Holy by Sufjan Stevens from Songs for Christmas