Luke 2:8-14 ... And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you, he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
These verses are part of the Luke 2 Christmas story, which I had to memorize as a child. Truly childhood memorization lasts for a lifetime! I can still state much of Luke 2 from memory; however, a verse I tried to memorize within the past year escapes me. It is a reminder of the importance of teaching our children! Once memorized, a “little’s” mind retains information for a lifetime.
In Luke’s recounting of the Christmas story, the angels came to lowly shepherds to share their joy, announcing the birth of Jesus. This announcement wasn’t to the mayor of Bethlehem, the innkeeper who had housed Mary and Joseph, or any other prominent citizen of the town. The shepherds alone had this honor. I recently read a brief article on the shepherds, and I truly wish I could remember the source in order to give the author credit. The article postulated that perhaps not all of the shepherds saw this heavenly splendor. There may have been a shepherd or two who missed the whole shebang because they were busy attending to “sheep” matters. This possibility gave me a chuckle. How could one miss the heavenly host – the bright angelic light and the thunderous joy of angelic voices singing?
And yet … this scenario seems plausible to me. Last Sunday, Swann and I sat in our sanctuary taking in the angelic sounds of Bellfest. Like many of us this time of year, while my body was still as I sat in our pew, my mind was racing through a long “to do” list of things that needed attention. Partway into the second song, it dawned on me that I wasn’t hearing a thing. The bell choirs were background noise only, and like the fictional shepherd in our scene above, I was the one missing it all. It took mindfully peeling myself away from my mental “to do” list, to fully appreciate the holiness of the moment.
Dear Lord, as we enter this special week of your birth, God come to earth as a baby, may we be ever mindful of those heavenly moments gifted to us. Give us pause to breathe in the precious gift of family and friends. May we also find time just to be with You – to converse in prayer, to meditate, to reflect on just what Jesus means to each of us.
Merry Christmas to all,
Diana
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