In the same region there were shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone around them, and they were terribly frightened. but the angel said to them,
“Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people. for this day in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (the Messiah).
And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]: you will find a Baby wrapped in [swaddling] cloths and lying in a manger.” Then suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host (angelic army) praising God and saying, “glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well-pleased.
Luke 2:8-14
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From Ann, Ahmee, Clella, Cynda, Tina, and myself…
we wish you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas!
God bless you and keep you!❦
This week, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we have been encouraged by our writers to praise God and bring Him honor and glory… just as the angels did when they came to the shepherds to announce the Good News of the birth of the Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
In When the Glory of the Lord is Shown Upon You, Ann reminded us of our privilege and joy to testify of God’s glory…
“I therefore request us, brethren, to cry unto God to show us His glory in all aspects of life so that we can be able to testify to others. How can we testify of His glory if we ourselves have not experienced it? The shepherds experienced the glory. (And, yes, they were terrified…just as the shepherds!) But the angel said to them “do not be afraid” for he came with good news. The testimony they had was “God brings good news.” Trust me, God is bringing His glory in different ways and we will testify. But I pray we will testify as we have experienced it and perceive it in Jesus’ Name.”
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In God Draws Near, Clella encouraged us—through many examples—to take the opportunity we’ve been given to ‘go tell!’ others about our God and Lord Jesus…
“We may be small and insignificant from the world’s perspective, yet to God we are like the lowly shepherds–we are very important to Him. He is personal. He has drawn near to us by sending His Light, Jesus, to dwell in our hearts. During this Christmas, we have the wonderful opportunity to show others just what a personal God we love and serve by sharing Jesus—Emmanuel—with anyone who will listen.”
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In Great Joy, Tina shared about recognizing the joy that we can have as we submit to God’s will…
“The fear of the Lord can also lead to great joy. Just as Mary submitted to God’s will for her life to have His Son, we can submit to His authority for His will in our life. Angels live among us today. There are many examples of situations where people were suddenly moved away from a possible accident, or have been miraculously healed of a disease. I have heard of these in my own church and from friends. God is alive and very active in our lives! (We just have to be willing to see.)”
