I shared some reflections a few weeks ago. Although I've been a Bible learner and disciple of Christ for many years, I do not yet have this walk figured out. It's filled with missteps and mistakes, and even when I re-read some of my prior posts, I can see how I could have represented the truth more fully and adequately. It is humbling to know that God still brings truth even in our tiny bit of understanding.
Today, we start a Bible study I've refused to write for months. It is a chapter out of my dark soul and a testament to the bright communion God showed me over a long, swarthy night. I know I need to sit still and get some of the messy, messy work God has graciously done down on paper. I dread it and welcome it all in one.
“If we were asked to read to a dying man who did not know the gospel, we should probably select this chapter as the most suitable one for such an occasion; and what is good for dying men is good for us all, for that which we are; and how soon we may be actually at the gates of death, none of us can tell.” ~Charles Spurgeon
No matter how you choose to celebrate Christ this season, let the Messiah–not the mayhem–reign in your heart. May you be richly blessed in Him!
Read: Luke 2:15—18
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.
Reflect: There are a few key principles in these verses: (1) the shepherds heard the Truth; (2) they became seekers of the Truth; and, (3) they told others about the Truth. Hear. Seek. Tell. It’s not a prescription, but it is a worthwhile discipline because we know from verse 18 that “all who heard it were amazed.”
Respond: Father, often I hear, but I don’t seek. Or, I hear and seek, but don’t tell others. Help me to have complete follow-through and to rightly apply Truth. Let it permeate my entire being so I can confidently tell others who You are and they can be amazed by You.
Tot Time: Have them practice saying: Hear, seek, tell. Explain what each of those words mean. Afterwards, you can pull up Go Tell It On The Mountain on your phone and have them sing with you!
