What do you see?
December 23rd, 2011 by
There must have been a lot of people in Bethlehem when Christ was born. I don’t know how many – but people had been called to go to their ancestral home and all the people from the line of David would have made their way there. Here’s the thing… with all the hundreds, or thousands, of people that were there we don’t hear anything… nothing… about any of them. The only people we hear about in the story of Jesus’ birth, besides Joseph and Mary (and Jesus) are the shepherds. The guys that were out in the fields abiding with their flocks.
I’m sure a few people must have heard about the baby that was born in the craziness of the census and stopped by to say hello. Or maybe when Joseph was getting food, or Mary was getting water they shared their happy news with others in the village. But we don’t hear about anyone worshiping Jesus – nobody recognizing him as the Messiah – except for the shepherds. All the normal people were going about their lives and missed out on something extraordinary.
So… this Christmas season, what do you see as you go about your daily business? What might you be missing? What might be hiding from you in the noise of your day? Take your headphones off and look around. Look for Jesus. Look for opportunities to see him – and to be him. He came to the least, the lost and the lowly – you know, the people you walk by all day long and take no notice of.
Why did God send his angels to the shepherds? I don’t know… maybe he knew they would listen. Maybe they weren’t too busy. Christmas is, by definition, the feast of, or celebration of Christ. Let’s celebrate him not only with gifts, food and fun (although those are great things to share with family) but let’s celebrate him – worship him – with our lives. Time, talents and treasures.
Merry Christmas.