Luke 2:15 Then the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened.” n
nOn this Christmas Day, we are at the end of a journey—the end of our Walk to Bethlehem. For many of us, the journey has been long: filled with busy schedules, long hours at work, extra chores, and added stress. Many of us have the attitude that we want Christmas to “just be here already”! And it is. Christmas is here. The Christ child is born. The angels have come.
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nBut are we prepared to receive the gift of our Savior? In today’s world, we are seemingly obsessed with “right now.” We want everything done immediately, to our personal specifications, and without inconvenience. I have been guilty on (many) more than one occasion of taking out my iPhone and ordering something from Amazon so that I can have it done immediately, and so that it will be delivered to my doorstep in two days or less. We are out of the practice of waiting—we fill our lives with so many things to do that we lose sight of what it is we are preparing and waiting for—the gift of our Savior.
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nIt is on this day, that I think the shepherds have something important to teach us. As the shepherds are going about their daily tasks, keeping watch over the sheep, the angels appear to them, announcing the birth of the Messiah. And the shepherds’’ response: “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened.” The shepherds had been waiting for and preparing for this announcement for their entire lives, just as generations before them. And when the word came, they went without hesitation, to see their Messiah.
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nAs we celebrate Christmas this year, my hope is that all of our desire for instant gratification will be transformed into a desire to meet our Savior without hesitation. I hope that we will, just like the shepherds, leave our daily tasks behind so that we can worship our King.
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nChrist is born! The Messiah has come! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
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nPrayer: Jesus our Messiah, thank you for coming into the world to live and walk among us. Help us to lay aside our busy-ness, so that we can meet you in wonder and amazement. Amen.
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nDeacon Sarah Shoup
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nDeacon Sarah Shoup
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