About 10 years ago while I was driving in an early December morning before daylight, I saw a meteorite!! It initially seemed as if someone had turned on a porch light in the middle of the clear, cold country sky. I stopped my car, got out, and watched it soar by, amazed. I excitedly tried to tell everyone I saw for days, even weeks, because it was a truly amazing experience. I got some laughs and even a picture drawn by my sons of Santa’s sleigh falling out of the sky in flames with the caption, “We believe you!” I realized that I couldn’t find the words to adequately describe this unique and once-in-a-lifetime event.
As I reflect on this Christmas, I have tried to grasp the experience of the shepherds. These humble, solitary men, out in the dark fields, being the first to be told of Jesus’ birth. To see an angel appear in the sky announcing the good news of great joy. (The angel would have had to tell me not to fear, too!) Then, to see a sky full of angels (whatever that would look like) praising God. Wow, my words couldn’t have described that experience. I imagine after going to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus just as described by the angel, they would be in awe. How would they have been able to contain their joy, wonder, amazement!!!
As the words of the song, Hark, The Herald Angels Sing, explain
Hark the herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled”
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
“Christ is born in Bethlehem”
Hark! The herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!”
I desire to be so excited at the gift of my Savior, Jesus, that I will join triumphantly with the angels in praising God, not caring how well I sing or if my words are eloquent. I want to shout it from the mountains, and in the valleys of my life. May the joy of the Gift of Christmas imprint upon all I do so that all the world will see it in my life. I want to have the world see that all is well with my soul, not because of my circumstances but because of my God.
I want to be like the humble shepherds, proclaiming, “Christ is born in Bethlehem!
Glory to the newborn king!!” and “Joy to the World, the Lord has come!” all year.
