Monday, December
24, 2018
And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep.
Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” Luke 2:4-14(NLT)
Surprises come suddenly. (Now there’s a news flash!)
I’ve never actually liked the idea
of surprises. But surprises don’t ask if
they can happen; they just happen. That
is why they’re called surprises – they surprise you! They’re autonomous – they decide when, where,
how much, and with what purpose they happen.
All you have is your reaction to the surprise.
This is why surprises aren’t my
favorite thing; I’d like to be able to pick and choose which things life has
permission to throw at me. That surprise
16th birthday party was ok, but nearly severing my big toe back in
1987 was something I would have crossed-off the dance card if I’d known about
how weak that aquarium glass was if you put your foot against it to scoot it
across the carport. Surprises sometimes
include blood!
The shepherds understood surprises;
you don’t care for flocks of sheep, notoriously dumb animals that wander around,
falling into all kinds of troubling predicaments, without being familiar with
surprises. It’s just that the shepherds weren’t
prepared for an angel and a choir the size of the New Year’s Eve Times Square
crowd floating in the night air above.
Surprises can sometimes be terrifying.
But now, later that night, look at
the faces of those shepherds, and tell me what happens when a surprise from heaven
settles-in to do its work in your life:
Notice that all six faces in the
picture (7 if you count the cow) are illuminated. The artist wanted us to know something about
these faces and the worth of this surprise.
We know Mary’s face, a young teen
with her firstborn; how do you put into words the joy and overwhelming sense of
fearful wonder that you won’t be good enough for all this?
At Mary’s side, with his hands
folded on the cow’s head, we see contented joy.
This shepherd is just taking-in the human moment…and why not? It’s not often a common shepherd gets to
participate in a world-class event…and in a front-row seat!
The Man in the lower left with hands
clasped in a prayerful pose shows wonder, his face is an I-don’t-know-what-to-make-of-this
prayerful plea of anxiety over what this will mean; will it all be alright?
The boy next to Mary is pure,
excited joy. “Do you believe this; man,
this is great” is the expression of youthful naiveté,
who cannot possibly see anything but the upside. This is the Hallmark moment under
the Christmas tree; all gift, no grief.
And lastly (besides the cow who
may be looking more at the hay that was supposed to be her supper), at the far (upper)
left is a man’s face that speaks the shadow of the cross to me. His right hand is near his heart, and the
left raised in something of a benedictory pose.
At first glance I saw just a bland, unfeeling look on that face. But on deeper examination I see the pathos of
future surprises for this child that transcends such a serene moment of a new
baby’s untouched life. This prayerful
shepherd understands life will not be all picnics and walks in the park.
There are indeed hard times ahead
for the Christ child. His willingness to
accept all of it, so I can experience His joy, is present enough for me.
For You Today
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.
