Read Luke 2:8-20
God became a baby.
Of all the ways He could have entered our world…a baby.
He could have torn open the sky and flooded the earth with spiritual creatures, showing Himself as all powerful to the most influential leaders on the planet. But He came quietly as a human, entering the world the same way you and I did. He came so humbly.
But then look at how He announced His coming, and who He announced it to! Shepherds. Not wealthy. Not powerful. Ordinary people. And these shepherds didn’t just overhear an important conversation about the coming of the Messiah. They were the first audience. A powerful angel, surrounded by the blazing glory of God, was sent to tell them the news. “… I’m here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide… A savior has just been born…”
Why did God choose to first share this message with ordinary people? Why did He treat them like they mattered in a special way? What does this story say about our most powerful and wise Creator? What does it say about how God sees our world, what He values?
Maybe God wants us to know that He delights in meeting us in special ways inside of the ordinary moments of life. Maybe that’s where the magic is really found, where the most powerful messages from God are heard and shared and spread.
This story and many others in Scripture affirm that to be true. St. Paul said the great mystery and hope of the gospel is Christ in us…in you and me. Ordinary people doing ordinary things with the humble and powerful life of Christ growing and showing up through us.
Let this reflection encourage you to be more present, more content, more aware of the life and ministry of Jesus inside of your regular, ordinary moments. That’s where the power of faith really comes alive. God delights in meeting us there to give us purpose, to prove He loves us, to form the life of Jesus in us for the good of everybody.
For Personal Reflection: Where do you see the glory of Jesus most clearly in your ordinary, everyday moments?
✧ Nativity Building: Place a donkey near Mary. She may have ridden a donkey to Bethlehem, because she was so close to having a baby. Years later, Jesus Himself would ride a donkey into Jerusalem.
by Greg Marshall
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