The Christmas Witnesses- THE SHEPHERDS

Sometimes, on Christmas Eve, I'm driving near some countryside and I look upon the fields and imagine the scene of that first Christmas.  I can almost see the brilliant, amazing Star hanging low in the sky, bursting forth a spotlight on the earth below.  I imagine a barn with animals and straw, but also filled with an amazing spectacle.  A young woman just gave birth to a baby boy.  The bright star is calling out to us to come and see a newborn King.

As we approach Christmas, let's go to that manger and gaze upon this baby, but let's look at Him through different sets of eyes.  We read about different individuals who witnessed this miraculous, revolutionary event in history.  Let's look through their eyes and see if we don't see what they saw.

These working-class men lived tough lives.  They lived outside with few comforts and endured the daily grind of taking care of herds of sheep.  They were constantly on watch, on guard against predators and bandits who could come to invade their flocks.  They were most likely simple, uneducated men, the most ordinary men you could find in that day.

They were not religious by any accounts.  They just did what they knew to do each day.  They worked all day, took care of their families, got a little rest, woke up and started all over again.  Life was mundane and predictable.  That is, until this Angel of the Lord entered into their mediocrity and cast a new vision in their lives.

There was a purpose and meaning to this life that they never knew about.  There was Hope that this life was but a preparation for another life to come.  God didn't send His angels to visit the religious scholars of the day.  No, He came first to ordinary folk, for He wanted to show that He cared about the common man.  The shepherds may have heard about a coming Messiah when they were little, but through all the years of just living life, they may have come to the conclusion that He wasn't coming for them.

Maybe you are like the shepherds.  You've heard about this Jesus, and Christmas after Christmas, you've celebrated this holiday.  However, He has seemed far away.  You have been working away, just getting through life, but in your heart, you are longing for more.  His Light has come to you, and He is calling you to come near.  Your life is about to change forever, if you follow the Light.