Psalm 23 The Lord is my shepherd

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want. . .

A shepherd tends his flock, protecting the sheep from predatory animals. He brings his charges through unseen dangers. King David--once a shepherd--knew the various tasks needed to care for sheep: rescuing the errant ones from peril; providing them with nourishment, having to move them regularly in an effort to provide food for them.

Isn’t God our shepherd? Doesn’t He protect us from danger? Doesn’t He rescue us from harm? Doesn’t the heavenly Father provide for us? The obvious answer to each of these questions is “yes.” Because of what He does for us, each of us can say, “I shall not be in want.”

As God’s sheep, we have certain behaviors to display. We are to obey Him. We are to listen for His voice. We are to wait for Him to rescue us. We are to yield to Him when He helps us.

Preparation for Christmas


Over the years people in our society have devoted a quantity of time getting ready for Christmas. People make time for shopping for the ‘right gift.’ They decorate their homes with numerous Christmas trees, wreaths, mistletoe and colorful centerpieces. Mothers bake cookies and make candies for their families and friends. I think these things are nice if the people do them with the spirit of Christ in their hearts.

Sometimes, in all of this preparation, People push Christ aside. Interesting enough all this preparation consumes more time than the holiday itself.

Due to the economic issues facing our nation, people seem to be doing the preparation in a down-scaled fashion. Because of all we hear about the financial state of the banking and the automotive industries, people don’t know where they stand with their incomes and their insurance coverage.

Some questions come to the forefront of this blogger’s mind:
1. Are we preparing for Christ at all?
2. Do we honor Christ with our lifestyle?
3. Shouldn’t we reflect Christ as we prepare for His birthday?
4. Shouldn’t we live for Christ every day?

The thought of keeping Christ in Christmas intrigued me when, as a child, I saw a banner hanging on a small building set up for bell ringers. It read “Keep Christ in Christmas.” I didn’t know what they meant.

Now, as I watch television and read the newspaper, I notice the commercialism of Christmas. On television, I hear local businesses as they wish us “Happy Holidays.” I heard one particular business say “Merry Christmas.”

The Giver

(John 3:16)

Two thousand years ago, mankind received a precious gift. God, our creator, gave us His Son because of His great love. He desires us to live with Him when our days here on earth are completed.

God, who holds all of life in His hands, loved us so much He chose to share Himself with us in the form of Jesus.

God breathed life into Adam in the garden. Adam and Eve disobeyed His order. The Heavenly Father then raised up prophets, kings, and judges to deliver His message to the people but mankind didn’t follow the rules. Because of His grace, God sent Jesus to us.

As we proceed through this Advent season, let’s reflect on the giver as well as the gift.

The Gift

(Luke 2:11)

God gave us a gift--the best one ever. He gave himself, in the form of a baby. The baby Jesus willingly gave up the glory of heaven to enter our world to allow us to learn how we should live.

The gift came to us in an unexpected way. People at that time looked for a Messiah to come. This savior would wear royal robes trimmed in ermine. He would be born in a palace, have a lot of wealth at his disposal, and have no need of anything. Or so they thought. Jesus was born in a stable, learned the carpenter trade from His earthly Father, had few resources, and probably made do with what he had.

God gave us a gift to adore, to follow and to serve. As we grow in Christ, let us learn to depend on the Gift we received from God.

The First to Hear--Sherpherds

(Luke 2:8)

The shepherds--lowliest of the low class--had no rank in Judean society. They couldn’t testify in court. With a semi-nomadic lifestyle, they spent a great deal of time away from their families.

These men had no comforts when they tended their flocks. They slept on the cold, hard ground at night. They might have had bedrolls.

They led a dreary and dangerous life. Wild animals always waited to pounce on the sheep. The shepherds fought off wolves with whatever they had. When the winter winds howled, they had to move their flocks into valleys or canyons between mountains to protect themselves and the sheep from the winter winds.

Yet, God chose to include them in His plan to spread the news of Jesus’ birth. He used them to convey the idea that Jesus came to earth for all of us--the homeless, the poverty stricken, the chronically ill, the seriously ill, the upwardly mobile, and the elite.

Angels, the Message Bearers

(Luke 1:26-33, Matthew 1:20-22 Luke 2:8-14)

God chose his angels to carry the good news of Christ’s birth to the people of Judea.

The angel Gabriel visited Mary, a young girl from a poor family. The news he shared with this young girl was the first word from God in 400 years .There had been no prophets, no angels, nothing. And now an angel appeared to the most unlikely person--a young peasant girl.

An angel appeared to a confused Joseph in a dream. This heavenly visitor told him the child his fiancée carried was from the Holy Spirit. The visitor also instructed him as to his role in this child’s life and even told this lowly carpenter the name chosen for the Holy child.

On the night of Jesus’ birth, an angel came to the shepherds. The heavenly being spread light all over the dark field where the shepherds tended their flocks. The angelic words comforted the hearers. He told of the birth of the Christ child in the nearby town of Bethlehem. A great host of angels, praising God, filled the dark winter sky

Angels --God’s message bearers--carried the good news to the principles in the story. Mary didn’t know how to react at first. But she finally surrendered to God’s will.

The angelic visit to Joseph changed the course he would follow in this chain of events. The angel and the heavenly host gave a special blessing to the shepherds on that wondrous night so long ago. God chose them to be the first to hear the good news of Christ’s birth.

Joseph

(Matthew 1:18-25)

Joseph--a carpenter in Nazareth kept his eye on a young girl named Mary. When he felt the time appropriate, he spoke to her father about marriage. Mary’s father conveyed Joseph’s request for her hand in marriage to his wife. Joseph departed their home very happy--they blessed the betrothal.
A short time later, Mary journeyed to Judea to visit her family’s relative, Elizabeth. Mary stayed there three months. Upon her return to Nazareth, she and Joseph had a long talk. Joseph learned his beloved Mary was with child.

This news confused him. The law said they were to go through a one-year engagement--a time of chasteness. Also it set out a severe punishment if the couple or even if just the woman violated the rule. The woman would face being stoned. But he loved Mary. He was a righteous man. He thought about quietly breaking the engagement.

One night, as Joseph slept, an angel appeared to him. The angel told Joseph the child Mary carried was a child conceived by the Holy Spirit. He chose to obey the angel and stay engaged to Mary.

While in Bethlehem, Joseph again saw an angel. The angel forewarned him of the danger awaiting them if they returned to Nazareth. This time the angel instructed Joseph to take his tiny family and flee to Egypt.

In a few short months Joseph received guidance from God’s angel two times. Both of these times he obeyed the heavenly messenger, thereby protecting the Christ Child and Mary.