Filling Up the Manger with the Last Straw
Twas “a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). The unspoken speaks how it all went down as He came down that holy night. Preparing Him room came long before the arrival of as no doubt there were many ins and outs along The Way. You know, things like the Inns had to be all booked so there would be no room. The stable offering stability was carved out long before the arrival of this Babe of whom we speak. And seven hundred years before was told all bold by Isaiah when he spoke. “The virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Is. 7:14).
Straw was perhaps strewn ahead of time within the stable which helped prepare Him room. And because it was there upon arrival of the threesome, they’d soon be able to cradle the Babe within the manger, within the stable, which would soon behold the Son of God.
Or, was it hay? It most certainly could have been hay rather than straw. We don’t know every detail as the angels broke the silence that silent night as “the Word was made flesh.” (John 1:14).
There’s a difference you know, between straw and hay. Hay feeds while straw acts as an insulator, a protection if you will, from the elements that might otherwise be rather chilling. It offers comfort, and so it did to the Comforter of all mankind.
And in the stillness, I wonder what the last straw was that caused God to send down His only begotten Son. Oh, I know, way back in the plan of salvation, The Way was made and it came to pass—this Babe protecting us from things that cling. Straw can be pretty clingy, and that’s why He came—this Babe now covering the last straw. Truth is, that which clings may not only break the camel’s back as we say, but it breaks His sacred heart, and thus He came.
As my mind wanders, I still wonder. Was it hay rather than straw in that manger? Most mama’s wouldn’t be able wrap their minds around that though. After all, the animals nearby might nibble too nigh to the Babe—and I doubt Mary would have allowed that—nor Joseph for that matter.
No, I think it was straw. It’s the straw we must hand over to the Babe in the manger so that He may cling to every tiny piece of broken in our lives. As we place each piece within the manger, may He cling to it as we cling to Him. Allowing Him to take hold of the last straw tis a gift we give back to the Savior. Tis a signal of sorts, a nod in His direction that we not only trust in The Way which was prepared so long ago, but all that is and is to come.
“And this will be a sign to you; You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). Amen.
