At Christmastime, our thoughts naturally go to the birth of Jesus—the crowded inn, the weary journey, and the familiar frustration we feel toward the innkeeper. How could he not make room? A pregnant woman. A long journey. A moment that would change the world. It feels unthinkable.

Yet the innkeeper didn’t know who Jesus was.

What’s far more sobering is that we do know who He is—and still struggle to make room for Him.

We live in a season where “making room” is often rebranded as “creating space.” We declutter our homes, slow our schedules, protect our mental health, and prioritize rest. These can all be good things. But they can also become substitutes for true devotion. We can replace one set of distractions with another and still leave Jesus outside, waiting.

The question Advent presses into us is simple but piercing: How much room does Christ truly have in the dailyness of our lives?

Scripture introduces us to King Josiah as a powerful answer to that question. Long before he ever heard the rediscovered Law of God, Josiah began seeking the Lord with an open heart. Years before Scripture confronted him, he purged his kingdom of false worship. When the Word finally came, it wrecked him—because his heart was already prepared.

Josiah didn’t make room for God impulsively. He prepared space deliberately—and then fiercely protected it.

This season invites us to do the same. To return to the manger. To remember that Jesus came not because we had room, but because we needed rescue. And then, having received Him, to clean house—removing anything that competes with our worship of the one true King.

Advent isn’t about adding more. It’s about making room—and holding it—for Christ alone.

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