The night held nothing special—cold, dark. A few stars with little moonlight. A good night to sit around a fire. Six of us watched our sheep and waited for morning. Our conversation lagged as we scooted closer to the fire for warmth. We nodded off. Most of us, both shepherds and sheep, soon slept.
Thinking that I was dreaming, I was startled by a brilliant . . . something. A sky full of something. What was it? This shining, glowing thing. I had heard stories of angels. Just stories. Nothing I really believed. Were we seeing angels? But why? It was so bright that we trembled.
Then one of the vast, winged creatures said, “Don’t be afraid. I bring you good news. Great news. Joyful news. Your Savior, Christ the Lord, is born today. You will find him in a stable in Bethlehem.”
We conquered our fear, traveled to Bethlehem, and found the newborn baby, whom his mother had named Jesus: a holy baby, a perfect baby boy. We, lowly shepherds, were the first to worship Him.
How do we typically react to seeing something we don’t understand, which might be a message from God? Why would He want to give us messages? But the marvel is that He does want to share news with us. He wants to lead everyone to Jesus.
We may be no better than a lowly shepherd, but we are no less. For centuries, they have been known as the ones who first worshipped our newborn Lord. They did not ignore the message. Though terrified, they refused to let fear dominate them. They went to Bethlehem.
Let’s remind ourselves daily to watch for God’s messages, to hear and see what He tells and shows us.
Susan Paulus is the mother of three adult daughters and grandmother to nine and has been married for over 60 years. She loves her part-time job at her small church in Northwest Ohio, is challenged by the two writers' groups she attends, and loves remembering she was led to the Lord in the mid 1970's by a woman who prayed, "Lord, use me."