No Room at the Inn

We took off Saturday for a family vacation to the northeast - Washington DC, New York, and other places of interest. Heather had “planned” for us to leave around 4:00 a.m., but we got off a bit later than expected. We hit the 4:00 part about right, but it was p.m. instead. Usually when we take trips we tend to stress about leaving and making good time, but this trip we decided to relax and not be in any particular hurry. Still there is a certain amount of stress trying to be sure the kids have packed the right stuff (well, stress for Heather anyway since I usually don’t have a clue and it falls to her)…as well as being sure I have the right stuff too. After all, if it were up to me, I would just throw whatever in the suitcase and probably end up embarrassing the family, and coming up short a few sets of clean clothes. Since this is the longest, and the first driving, family vacation we have ever taken, images of the Griswalds have haunted my dreams…both night and day.

There is also a matter of packing food for the trip, being sure the mail is stopped, the water is shut off, the cats are cared for, the insurance is paid, withdrawing some cash to carry, and the ever popular loading of the car (Hey! At least that is the one thing I know how to do!) There is also a matter of being sure there is someone to teach my Sunday morning class, be in charge of worship service, and plan the Sunday Night Praise service. Just thinking about these things is exhausting enough.

After a quick stop in Lawrence to dine with our good friends, we headed out for St. Louis to see the Arch (and of course the home of the 2004 NL Champion Cardinals), and then on toward Louisville. About 1:00 a.m., we began looking for a hotel room in Evansville, Indiana, apparently home to the famous annual “Freedom Festival”, because there was literally no room at the inn - any inn! After a stop at about 10 hotels, we discovered that all the hotels were booked to the brim. We had to drive another hour to find an available room.

Now I can imagine how Mary and Joseph must have felt. The strain and stress of getting ready to go to Bethlehem must have been tremendous. Granted they didn’t yet have children to pack, but Mary being pregnant must have been a whole other challenge. They would have had to pack extra clothes for Mary, just in case; clothes, and possibly some toys, for the baby, just in case (what toys do you pack for God to play with?); enough food for the journey, and maybe a few extra pickles. (Maybe Joseph would have wanted to call ahead to see where the local hospital was, and what doctors were on call.) What a bother…especially for a trip that was mandatory, not a vacation! And then to get there only to find that there were no available rooms. Adding to the stress and pain of labor, they must have gone all over the city looking for anyone who would leave the light on for them. Finding no Comfort Inn, Motel 6, Best Western, or Red Roof Inn, they settled for the only accommodations offered, a smelly stable with noisy animals and the most unsanitary conditions.

Yet, amidst such tension, chaos, and uncertainty, the Prince of Peace came into the world to restore order and salvation and light to a darkened world.

I guess family trips CAN turn out OK after all!