photo courtesy of artur84@@freedigitalphotos.net

With the Christmas season fast approaching and lots added to our “to do” lists, I wanted to take a moment and help you reflect upon this season.  We as women can get so wrapped up in the “doing” that we forget the “being” part of Christmas time.  I wanted to write this devotional to help us identify with each of the nativity people.  This will be presented in a 10 part series–each day signifying a different person.  You can download it here for the complete devotional to use in your ladies group–includes all scripture NKJV.  Or you can enjoy a new person each day through my blog.  Be blessed as we go about remembering the reason for this season.

Day 6: The shepherds

Read scripture: Luke 2:8-20

The first people chosen to hear about the birth of the Messiah were the lowly shepherds. These guys were not significant people at all. They spent the majority of their days worshiping God while out tending their flocks. Not out doing some great ministry job. It shows that God chooses the humblest in spirit to do His work. It is no surprise that God chose these people to proclaim the news of His son’s birth.
We should never disregard our self as never being not good enough for God. God is looking for those with a pure heart to be able to do His work. That is it! He doesn’t care what type of profession you are in, your social status, your age, or how much money you make—-he just wants you.
After seeing and being confirmed that the baby was born, they rejoiced and spread the good news. They were excited for what God had done.

Do you need to appreciate that God wants to bestows his favor on you? It does not matter what your situation is in life, what matters is that you WANT to serve God. He will make all of those problems and negative things in your life, work out for His glory. Do you need to stop complaining about all of the bad going on in your life and instead start speaking the goodness that God bestows upon you? Stop focusing on the negative and start focusing on the positive things. Life will get much better!

day 7

photo courtesy of artur84@@freedigitalphotos.net

With the Christmas season fast approaching and lots added to our “to do” lists, I wanted to take a moment and help you reflect upon this season.  We as women can get so wrapped up in the “doing” that we forget the “being” part of Christmas time.  I wanted to write this devotional to help us identify with each of the nativity people.  This will be presented in a 10 part series–each day signifying a different person.  You can download it here for the complete devotional to use in your ladies group–includes all scripture NKJV.  Or you can enjoy a new person each day through my blog.  Be blessed as we go about remembering the reason for this season.

Day 5:  The angels
We have multiple references in Bible about the angels given the job of proclaiming the good news. They approached Zachariah, Joseph, Mary, and the shepherds, I know that the angels are not mortal beings but to be giving the task of sharing good news with people has to be exciting.

I think of the job that Ty Pennington has on Extreme Home Makeover, what a great place to be! Here you have these stories of people just being pushed through the wringer of life and he gets to tell them that their life is about to change physically for the better. You can see the joys in the eyes and through the tears of the people. Knowing you are doing something to help better their life, now that is a good job to have!
Sharing all the good that God has done in your life and how God will do it for someone else, is the greatest gift you can give to someone. We need to look for opportunities to worship the Lord and serve as His messenger to the lost of this world.

Do you need to be more like the angels and take the time to worship the Lord and share the goodness that He brings—especially during this stressful, sometimes chaotic time of life? One of the best things you can do is take the TIME to do something nice for someone else. Maybe it will be to sit and just listen to someone. Maybe it will be to bless someone financially this holiday season. If you know in your heart that you should be helping someone else, even in a small task—do it! God will show you what you need to do. Something even as little as buying a cup of coffee for a worker out on the streets this holiday, will go a long way. Don’t underestimate small gestures of blessings. You don’t know what people go through or what they need, but God does.

day 6