Trouble At The Inn

Merry Christmas!

I heard this story at a Christmas concert a few weeks ago, and thought it illustrated the meaning of Christmas really well.  Some of you may have already heard me tell this story since I used it in a devotion I gave last week, but I hope you enjoy it anyways!

For years now, whenever Christmas pageants are talked about in a certain little town in the Midwest, someone is sure to mention the name of Wallace Purling.

Wally's performance in one annual production of the Nativity play has slipped into the realm of legend. But the old-timers who were in the audience that night never tire of recalling exactly what happened.

Wally was nine that year and in the second grade, though he should have been in the fourth. Most people in town knew that he had difficulty keeping up. He was big and awkward, slow in movement and mind.

Still, Wally was well liked by the other children in his class, all of whom were smaller than he, though the boys had trouble hiding their irritation when Wally would ask to play ball with them or any game, for that matter, in which winning was important.

They'd find a way to keep him out, but Wally would hang around anyway—not sulking, just hoping. He was a helpful boy, always willing and smiling, and the protector, paradoxically, of the underdog. If the older boys chased the younger ones away, it would be Wally who'd say, "Can't they stay? They're no bother."

Wally fancied the idea of being a shepherd in the Christmas pageant, but the play's director, Miss Lumbard, assigned him a more important role. After all, she reasoned, the innkeeper did not have too many lines, and Wally's size would make his refusal of lodging to Joseph more forceful.

And so it happened that the usual large, partisan audience gathered for the town's yearly extravaganza of crooks and creches, of beards, crowns, halos and a whole stageful of squeaky voices.

No one on stage or off was more caught up in the magic of the night than Wallace Purling. They said later that he stood in the wings and watched the performance with such fascination that Miss Lumbard had to make sure he didn't wander onstage before his cue.

Then the time came when Joseph appeared, slowly, tenderly guiding Mary to the door of the inn. Joseph knocked hard on the wooden door set into the painted backdrop. Wally the innkeeper was there, waiting.

"What do you want?" Wally said, swinging the door open with a brusque gesture.

"We seek lodging."

"Seek it elsewhere." Wally spoke vigorously. "The inn is filled."

"Sir, we have asked everywhere in vain. We have traveled far and are very weary."

"There is no room in this inn for you." Wally looked properly stern.

"Please, good innkeeper, this is my wife, Mary. She is heavy with child and needs a place to rest. Surely you must have some small corner for her. She is so tired."

Now, for the first time, the innkeeper relaxed his stiff stance and looked down at Mary. With that, there was a long pause, long enough to make the audience a bit tense with embarrassment.

"No! Begone!" the prompter whispered.

"No!" Wally repeated automatically. "Begone!"

Joseph sadly placed his arm around Mary and Mary laid her head upon her husband's shoulder and the two of them started to move away. The innkeeper did not return inside his inn, however. Wally stood there in the doorway, watching the forlorn couple. His mouth was open, his brow creased with concern, his eyes filling unmistakably with tears.

And suddenly this Christmas pageant became different from all others.

"Don't go, Joseph," Wally called out. "Bring Mary back." And Wallace Purling's face grew into a bright smile. "You can have my room."

Some people in town thought that the pageant had been ruined. Yet there were others—many, many others—who considered it the most Christmas of all Christmas pageants they had ever seen.

Wally had room in his heart for Jesus, the King of Kings.  Do you?

Published originally in Guideposts.  http://www.guideposts.org/hope-and-faith/true-meaning-christmas-pageant

Captured By Giant Despair Part 2 of 2

A few days ago we left Christian and his friend Hopeful in the dungeon of Doubting Castle.  They had been tempted to commit suicide but decided to continue to live the life that they had been given.  Let's pick up the story where we left off.

Toward evening the giant came down again to see if they had submitted to his counsel.  He found them alive, but only barely alive, for they were perishing for food and water, and suffering miserably from their wounds.  Seeing them still alive, the giant flew into a terrific rage, storming out at them:  "You have disobeyed my counsel!  Now it shall be worse with you than if you had never been born."

At his terrible words, they shook with fear, and Christian went into a swoon.  When he had come to himself again, they remembered their discussion about taking their own lives.  Christian was now inclined to favor the idea.  But Hopeful made a second plea:  "My brother, remember how valiant you were with Apollyon [Satan].  He could not defeat you, nor were you defeated by all you saw and heard in the Valley of the Shadow of Death.  What hardships, terror, and amazement you have already come through!  And, you see, I'm in the dungeon too, a far weaker person by nature and experience than you, receiving the same punishment and suffering the same agony.  This giant has wounded me and has also cut off bread and water from my mouth.  And along with you, I mourn without the light.  But let us exercise a little more patience.  Remember how brave and strong you were at Vanity Fair.  You did not shrink from chains, or iron cage, or bloody death.  Then, let us (at least to avoid the shame of conduct unbecoming to Christians) bear up with patience as best we can.  Deliverance will come by and by."

That night the giant's wife asked him about the prisoners.  She wanted to know if they had taken his counsel.  "No," he said, "they are sturdy rogues.  They choose to bear all hardships rather than do away with themselves."

She replied:  "Tomorrow, take them into the castle yard and show them the bones and skulls of those you have disposed of and make them believe that before the week ends you will tear them in pieces, as you have done with all others."

So when morning came, he took them into the castle yard and showed them the skeletons of those he had murdered.  "Those," he said, "were once pilgrims like you.  They trespassed on my property, and when I saw fit I tore them to pieces, just as I will do to you within ten days if you remain alive on my premises.  Now go down to your dungeon and think it over."  With that he beat them all the way into the dungeon.  There they lay all day Saturday in a deplorable condition.

That night the giant remarked to his wife that he could not understand how his prisoners remained alive.  He had not been able by blows or threats or counseling to bring them to their end.

Then Gloom said, "I am afraid that they live in hopes that someone will come to their rescue; or they may have tools for picking a lock, thus hoping to get out."

"That is true," he said.  "In the morning I will search them."

About midnight Saturday night, Christian and Hopeful began to pray and continued until almost break of day.  Then Christian suddenly broke out in amazement, "What a fool!  What a fool I am to lie here in this stinking dungeon when I might walk free on the highway to glory!  I have a key in my bosom called Promise which I am sure will open any door in Doubting Castle."

Hopeful:  That is certainly good news, my brother.  Get out your key and try it.

Then Christian took the key of Promise and pushed it into the lock of the dungeon door.  The bolt fell back and the door came open.  They walked out into the castle.  Then they went to the door leading to the castle yard.  The key opened that door also.  Now they came to the great iron gate leading outside.  The lock to the gate was exceedingly difficult, yet they unlocked it and pushed the gate open to make their escape.  But the gate made such a creaking sound that it woke the giant, who jumped out of bed to pursue his prisoners.  Then he was seized by one of his fits and lost the use of his limbs.  The prisoners ran to the King's highway, where they were safely beyond Despair's jurisdiction.

From:  Pilgrim's Progress In Today's English
By John Bunyan
Retold by Jamesh. Thomas

Captured By Giant Despair Part 1 of 2

I was reading a fairly popular Christian book the other day called Pilgrim's Progress.  You have probably heard of it or even read it.  But, if you haven't read it, let me give you some background information.  The book is an allegory of the Christian walk.  It tells the story of a man named Christian and his many adventures and trials as he travels to the "Celestial City."  Below is an excerpt from the story that I thought might ring true with some of you.  Enjoy!

Not far from where they [Christian and his companion Hopeful]lay there was an old castle called Doubting Castle, owned by one Giant Despair; and it was on his grounds they were sleeping.  And, as his habit was, the giant rose early and was inspecting his grounds and fences after the rain when he came upon Christian and Hopeful sleeping on his premises.  With a gruff voice he told them to wake up, and commanded them to tell where they were from and what they were doing on his grounds.  They told him that they were pilgrims and had lost their way.

Then said the giant, "You have trespassed on my property this night; therefore, you must come along with me."  They were compelled to go, because he was much stronger than they.  They had but little to say in their defense, for they knew they were at fault.  The giant drove them before him into his castle and put them in a very dark dungeon--a nasty, stinking place.  There they lay from Wednesday until Saturday night without food or water and without a ray of light or anyone to console them.  They were in a pitiful plight, far from friends and acquaintances.  Now Christian had double sorrow, because it was his ill-advised hasty decision that had brought them into all this trouble.

Giant Despair had a wife whose name was Gloom.  So when he had gone to bed, he told his wife he had taken two prisoners and locked them in the dungeon for trespassing on his property, and asked her what he ought to do with them.  After he had told her what they were, where they were from and where they were going, she advised that when he arose next morning he should beat them unmercifully.  When he got up next day he took his knotted, crabtree club and went down to the dungeon.  First, he berated them shamefully as if they had been sheep-killing dogs (they never returned an unkind word), then he fell upon them and beat them severely  They were helpless to resist or to ward off his blows.  Then he left them in the dark to pity themselves and mourn in agony.  They spent the whole day sighing and groaning.

The next night Gloom advised her husband to induce the men to do away with themselves.  So when morning came, he went down in a very ugly mood and said to the pilgrims:  "Since you will never get out of here alive (I will never give you anything to eat or drink, and the only possible way of escape from your miseries is to end your own life--either with knife, or rope, or poison), then would it not be smart to take the quick way out of your suffering?  For why should you choose to live, seeing life holds nothing for you now but extreme bitterness?"  Yet they pleaded with him to let them go.

At that he rushed upon them and would have beaten them to death, but he had one of his fits and lost the use of his arm for the moment.  So he withdrew and left them to consider what he had told them.  Then the prisoners consulted each other as to whether it was best to take his advice or not.

Christian:  Brother Hopeful, what shall we do?  The life we now have is extremely wretched.  For my part I know not whether it is best to live like this far a time, then starve to death, or be beaten to death by this brutal man, or to die now and get out of it.  Surely the grave is desired rather than this dungeon.

Hopeful:  Well, of course, our present condition is intolerable, and death would be far better to me than to spend the rest of my days in this place--whether they be many or few.  But let us consider that the Lord of the country to which we are going has said, "Thou shalt do no murder."  Not only are we forbidden to kill another person; much more are we forbidden to kill ourselves.  For he that kills another kills only bis body, but he who kills himself kills body and soul.  And you talk of ease in the grave, but have you forgotten the Hell to which all murderers go?  For you know that "no murderer hat eternal life."  And let us consider again that all the law is not in the hands of Giant Despair.  Others, I understand have escaped out of his hands.  Who knows but that God, who made the world, may cause the Giant to die, or that at some time or other the Giant may forget to lock us in, or in a short time he may have another of his fits and lose the use of his limbs?  And if that should ever happen again, I am determined to act the part of a man and do my utmost to break loose from him.  I was a coward when I did not do it before.  However, my brother, let us be patient, and endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ [2 Timothy 2:3], at least for a while.  The time may come when we will receive a happy release.  Anyway, let us not be our own murderers.

With those words, Hopeful succeeded in stabilizing the mind of his friend.  So they waited in the darkness another day in their pitiful state.

And so we leave Christian and Hopeful in the dungeon of Giant Despair.  Don't miss the end of their story coming this weekend!

A Calling From God

Some of you know that in the summers I work at a day camp at a church near me called Camp Agape.  I love working there, and every summer God uses my experiences there to grow and stretch my faith.  As the summer came to an end, I realized that I would have to go back to "real life."  Being in such close fellowship with so many other Christians and working together with them almost every day for ten weeks not only builds close relationships, but it is such an encouragement when you are constantly surrounded by other teens who are seeking to be Christlike.  As you can probably imagine, it is very hard to leave this atmosphere and go back to the "real world" where not everyone is a Christian and not everyone is trying to live a life that is pleasing to God.

As I was anticipating this transition, I began to look for ways that I could become more actively involved in ministry during the year.  I quickly came to realize that in order for me to take on any type of regular ministry commitment during the year I would have to cut my youth orchestra program out of my schedule.  I love music and I love being able to make music every Saturday with other teenagers, so I really didn't want to give it up!  As I was thinking about this, I talked it over with my sister.  In her logical, left-brained way, she explained to me that God had given me the ability to make beautiful music.  She said to me, "If God gave you the gift of music, you should use it!  He didn't give it to you without a reason."

Eventually, I came to realize that God had given me a huge mission field at my youth orchestra program!  The percentage of Christians there is very low, and being a pretty extroverted person I know a lot of people and have many opportunities to share the Gospel with people.  I am still in youth orchestra, and I have been able to have some really neat conversations about God with people!  It isn't always easy to stand up for what I believe in, but saying Romans 1:16 to myself reminds me that I do not need to be "ashamed of the Gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes."  I have begun to view my orchestra program as a wonderful way for me to shine the light of Christ.  It has become my mission field.  Even though I am too young to become a full-time missionary at this point, I can still share Christ with those around me.

Where is your mission field?

You might be thinking, "Oh please, I am not the missionary type.  Being a missionary isn't my calling!  I don't have a mission field."  I hate to break it to you, but there is no such thing as a "missionary type."  Also, we are all called to preach the Gospel "to all creation."  (Mark 16:15)  Now you are probably thinking, "Okay.  Fine.  Whatever.  I am too young to be a missionary anyways."  1 Timothy 4:12 says "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity."  You aren't too young!

Did you know that you don't have to go to a faraway country to be a missionary?  You can share the Gospel with the people next door if that is where God has called you right now.  Right now, God has placed me in my youth orchestra program to share the Gospel with those around you.  He may have you in a certain place or situation so that those around you can hear the Gospel.  God can use anyone in any situation!

I challenge you to spend some time praying and asking God to show you where He would like you to "be a missionary,"  and then find your mission field and get to work!  God is calling you.  How will you answer Him?