Letting Our Joy in Jesus Overflow

The Shepherds- The Joyful Response

Luke 2:16-20

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

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THOUGHTS FROM TODAY’S SCRIPTURES:

Imagine you’ve spent your entire life as a social outcast and a religious outsider. You’ve never accrued any significant wealth or reached a position of great influence. Now you’ve been invited by a messenger of God to the most spectacular birthday party in the history of the world—a birthday that will define and literally divide the history of the world. How would you respond?

The shepherd’s response was simple yet profound. They went with haste. They responded with a sense of urgency to God’s invitation. Throughout the gospels we see Jesus having this effect on people.

They spread the word. They could not contain the joy of the message they had heard. This is what sharing Jesus is really about, letting our joy in Jesus overflow.

They returned glorifying and praising God. God did not remove them from their life situation. They returned to their fields and sheep and that is where God placed them to worship Him.

Is there any area of your life where you are procrastinating in responding to God? How can you continue to worship God and share His joy in your life situation?