Think of a time when you saw a place – a restaurant, hotel, or home – that you thought so beautiful, it took your breath away.  Or perhaps a place where the wonders of nature filled you with awe.  Being an ordinary southern girl, I’ve never been to a lot of, in southern speak, “plum fancy” places.  On rare occasions, I’ve been to restaurants where I was afraid I was going to pick up the wrong fork!

Places that fill me with speechless wonder are scenes in nature.  The changing colors of the sky at sunrise and sunset.  The vivid hues of color on the trees in fall.  The crisp whiteness of snow in winter, or the deep crimson of roses in summer.

However, nothing that our eyes could behold here can compare to the glorious sight we will see in heaven.  With streets of gold, precious gems used for walls and pearls for the gates to The City.

Now, picture a small stable.  Straw on the floor, dust in the air, the smell of manure and dirty animals.  Damp and cold.

Our Lord Jesus left His heavenly home, that we cannot comprehend the beauty of, to come into a sinful world in one of the lowliest and dirtiest of places.

For the first time, God’s only Son was separated from His Father and His rightful throne.  Jesus became human as a helpless babe and relied on human parents to tend to His needs.  More than the unimaginable splendors of heaven, He came here, a sinful world, because He loved us!

Even though Christ gave up His rightful place beside the Father, the angels still praised Him and announced His birth on earth as a most glorious occasion.  The shepherds beheld a chorus of angels and came to worship Him.  Earthly wise men followed the stars to seek Him, the promised Messiah.

As people came before Him, the condition of the lowly stable is not mentioned.  Just the presence of Jesus was noticed and in His presence, people bowed and worshipped.

It’s just as hard to fathom the love that the Father has for us as it is to envision, with human minds, the splendor of heaven.  When I pause and think about what Christ left behind in order to come to live and die for me, the picture of the stable that comes to my mind is more beautiful than any other sight my eyes have ever seen.

his blog appeared on Encouragement Cafe  12/23/15