Good Morning Girls
Read Luke 2:8-20 Soap Luke 2:20
I love the fact that God gave important messages to unimportant people. There are several other patriarchs in scripture that were, by the world's standards, lowly workers. Moses and David are two examples of shepherds that received important messages from God, who were later used to lead God's people. This confirms that God uses the lowly, hardworking, normal people among us for His glory. Scripture consistently esteems the diligent man who provides for his family. Sometimes we as fallen humans tend to esteem those with prestige, assets, influence, etc. But God doesn't narrow His choices to those people at all. In fact, the opposite is true - that He chooses people who often have no money to offer or influence within their communities.
Some commentators believe that the shepherds mentioned in Luke were actually singing when they returned from seeing Jesus. I want to have the same response to God's working, both in my own life and the lives around me. Father, thank you for the spiritual growth you have begun in my family and church. I praise You for all You have done in our hearts. May we continually see your glory in our midst!
Comment below
Imagine being the shepherds out in the field on that night, maybe sitting around the campfire just enjoying the warmth from it and suddenly and an angel appeared with the glory of the Lord. That alone would be an amazing encounter but even greater was the message the angel brought which made their hearts rejoice with gospel of the Good News. The Shepherds heard the message, went and seen what was told to them and then they return, rejoicing because of the Savior of the world had come. They went back to their normal everyday lives with this knowledge but I bet they themselves were never normal again. I pray the gospel does not falls on deaf ears in my life, I pray that I would always return from hearing it with praise and rejoicing in my life. For I also have been with the Savior, maybe not in a physical form, but I can know Him by His words that he has left for me.
ReplyDeleteWe live in an age where the Good News is proclaimed widely. We hear it preach, we sing it, we read it, we study it on a daily basis and do we take it as seriously as we should? I can only speak for myself but I would say the answer is probably no. Help me Lord not to get distracted by the weak things of this world and go out and proclaim your word with a joyful heart of praise.
Matthew 28:19
Be blessed
I'm sure they were forever changed!
DeleteI am always so anxious to read your comments and I am never disappointed. I also noticed the verse saying there was a heavenly host that appeared with the angel glorifying God..... Can you imagine being a part of that? I get so excited when I think of what a glorious sight it had to be. Then, the best part, the shepherds believed and went to SEE Jesus. What a blessing. What a blessing we have to enjoy today. I sit here in my car and get to pray to that same Jesus. I get to rejoice and praise God freely. What blessings we have. I pray today I can share that joy with those I am around. I really do love your posts and seeing a tiny bit of your hearts and desires. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteThe angel chose the lowly shepherds to proclaim the good news to. They were terrified. Can you imagine? I'd probably have run for my life but they did not hesitate to drop everything and go to Bethlehem and see the Messiah. Then they told everyone they saw what they had seen. It is my pray that I would drop everything and GO when God is asking me to do something and that I would proclaim the GOOD NEWS about the Messiah like the shepherds.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Lisa. They did drop everything to see this important baby.
DeleteI too put too much stock in external appearances. In my case, it is brought on by fear. We stopped at a visitor's center on the way home from my folks on Sunday for Caroline to use the restroom. It was deserted and the lady at the counter was reading a book. When I got back to the car I mentioned to Mike that I thought that would be a great job, you could get a lot of reading done when it was slow. He said, "You'd never work there because you would think every person who walked in was going to rob you." He's right. I do have such a spirit of fear sometimes, especially based on the way a person looks or is dressed. Help me Lord to not be afraid of people and be ready to glorify and praise your name.
ReplyDeleteWhen I study this, what amazes me is how willing they were to drop everything and go. No excuses. No can this wait until tomorrow. They left and did God's will. They were willing to be a part of God's plan without hesitation. Then, they come back so excited they just cannot keep the news to themselves. Did the towns people open their hearts and really hear the good news? The shepherds are not high in society. or even middle class I don't believe. Sadly, being honestly ladies, I don't think I would have believed them. I would have thought the shepherds have really lost it or they hit the bottle a little too much trying to stay warm. Why else would they think they've seen the Savior after all? Lord, help me to look past the outside. Help me to have eyes like you.
ReplyDeleteDon't you think that may be why they had no fear when it came to sharing the news? I've never really thought about this before, but the shepherds just left and started telling everyone what was going on. The wise men did not because they feared Herod. The shepherds knew they really had nothing to lose by sharing the news. They had no farther on the social ladder to fall. I'm a people pleaser so I don't like to ruffle anyone's feathers, especially if they are deemed more important than me. I think that could be a stumblingblock for many though. We are so worried about how people will treat us after we share our faith, that we just don't share it to begin with. Hopefully, no one thinks I'm too offbase. The thoughts in my head don't always come out the way I intend for them too.
DeleteBrandy, this truth MUST be applied at our church. You are so right, that it's easy to unintentionally be more welcoming to people like us. I'm glad Jesus didn't provide salvation for just a select group of people. God, give us a love for ALL people.
ReplyDelete"Natsmom", I think those are very accurate thoughts. Makes too much sense (too close to home)!
ReplyDeleteLadies I agree!!
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