I couldn’t get there fast enough. None of us could. We were running and laughing. People we passed thought we had had too much to drink. Even we wondered if we had been seeing things. I mean how many people see angels, much less talk to them? Our terror turned to joy once the CHOIR of ANGELS started singing. Could this even be real?

We poked fun at each other as we ran.

‘You were shaking like a leaf!’

‘Me? Did you see Josiah?’

‘Hey, I’ve never seen angels before. Give me a break. You weren’t exactly the bravest among us Jeremiah.’

All of us burst into laughter. WE, the lowly shepherds were visited by angels! And not just one, a multitude! The news they carried was beyond belief. Finally, the Savior was born! Good news of great joy, indeed. The most joy! No one was going to believe us, unless we had seen this. We weren’t even going to believe it ourselves until we saw this baby. And in a manger, no less.

What fortune for us he wasn’t born in a castle. We would never have been allowed in a castle! Not in our smelly clothes, with our sheep following. Now, a manger…that is our kind of place. A place of lowing and humble beasts. A place we can relate to and be comfortable in. What a night this is!

Run, my Child. Run to find me! I am real. I am who I say I am. This is not a fantasy. You will find me when you seek me. Joy will flow over and you will be giddy with it. You will not be able to contain it. Your face will share it with the world around you. Your heart will beat faster. You will know, deep down, that your joy is your strength. It is for this reason I came…a baby wrapped in skin. Swaddled in cloth. Lying in a feed trough. So, I could nourish the world. So, you could come to me for your basic sustenance. No palace or manmade power. I will be found among the humble. The angels still sing my praise. They still point to me, God made flesh. Emanuel. God with us. I am with you, even now.