Ordinary Baby

A stained glass window at Lindsborg's Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church

Light filters through the jewel-toned glass, casting colorful shadows on the walls, floors and pew cushions. Light makes the scene come to life, as the angel hovers over the shepherds and tells them the Good News: 

⁸ Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. ¹⁰ Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. ¹¹ For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

 Luke 2: 8-14

I have heard those words every Christmas season for my entire life. I've been in many churches where the scene with angels and shepherds is beautifully depicted in stained glass. Each year, we add the delicate porcelain shepherds to the Nativity set, along with the pristine cows, sheep and donkey.

But this year, I've thought about the story in a slightly different way. Last month, Lovely Branches Ministries completed a Bible study called A Savior Is Born, which used video messages from Pete Briscoe.

In Bible times, he reminds us, the shepherds weren't society's elite. In today's society, Briscoe says, the shepherds would have more in common with homeless people than with CEOs. God chose shepherds - not the chief priests or elders - to hear the Good News first. 

The shepherds were dirty and smelly. It was the nature of their job. They didn't get to go home for a hot shower and meal every night. They were out among their sheep, keeping them safe from predators and rounding up ones who strayed away from the group. They sweated and got dirty as they walked miles and miles to find the best places for fresh water and green pastures for their sheep.

Just as the Bible study ended, my husband told me that a neighbor had baby lambs at his farm. So we drove over to look for a look and found our neighbor in the corral, wearing overalls and working the baby lambs. His boots were caked with manure. His hands were dirty, and his brow was sweaty on the unseasonably warm fall day.  And, I again thought about the shepherds.

As I stood on the outside of the fence and looked at the babies and the ewes, it was easy for me to think that this modern-day shepherd was rewarded with the cuteness quotient of his job. Of course, unlike the shepherds of ancient days, he is able to go into his house at the end of the day and clean up with a hot shower. But, while he was outside caring for those baby lambs and their mothers, it was more manure and straw than stained glass and light. 

In the evenings, he rounds up the littlest lambs and their mothers and puts them in the barn to protect them from the coyotes that would like a midnight snack. He doesn't have to lay at the gate to the pasture to protect his flock, like the shepherds of Bible times. But he does have to do his best to keep his flock safe. It means being home and being available at dusk to shepherd those most vulnerable creatures to the safety of the barn.

One of my favorite Christmas solos is called Ordinary Baby. Just some of the words are:

He was just an ordinary baby
That's the way He planned it, maybe.
Anything but common would have kept Him apart
From the children that He came to rescue
Limited to some elite few
When He was the only Child who asked to be born

And He came to us with arms wide open
Knowing how we're hurt and broken
Choosing to partake of all our joy and pain

He was just an ordinary baby
That's the way He planned it, maybe.
So that we could come to Him and not be afraid ...

He came to those dirty, smelly shepherds so long ago. He comes to imperfect and very human me. And even though my life and your life may not always be bright and shiny like stained glass, He promises to be our Good Shepherd, too. (John 10: 1-18)

Salem United Methodist Church, Newton, KS

May the true message of Christmas shine through all the busyness and the to-do lists, and may you find the Good Shepherd at the very center of your heart this holiday season. Merry Christmas from our Kansas farm to you! (Be sure and scroll to the bottom of this post for a link to some tried-and-true Christmas cookies!)

Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lindsborg

Here's one rendition of Ordinary Baby. Enjoy!

***

A few years ago, one of my friends hosted a holiday cookie exchange. It might be time to brush off that idea. Depending on how many friends or family members you invite, you can end up with a variety of cookies - without spending days upon end in the kitchen.

So please click here for a blast-from-the-past post from Lovely Branches and see how you, too, can host a cookie exchange.  There are links to lots of other cookie recipes, too. Happy Baking!

The Lord Is My Shepherd: A Photo Essay

The 23rd Psalm is more about living than dying.

Though it's probably the most quoted Scripture at funerals, shouldn't this Psalm of David be our guidepost for how we live our lives daily? It's a psalm many of us learned as children. Has it become something we say by rote or is it something we can take to heart and live each and every day?

It's only around 118 words, depending upon the translation. For me, it paints a word picture of PEACE, our Lovely Branches theme this month. It's full of imagery that gives me comfort: The Lord will take care of me. He'll give me rest when I need it. He'll lead me along the paths I should take. He gives me everything I need for daily living. Even when I face hard times, He's there beside me. And best of all, this relationship isn't just temporary: It's forever.

Psalm 23 shows us a caring shepherd, secure sheep, and a tranquil scene of quiet meadows and still waters. But it is Jesus who gives us peace, not the green grass or the flowing stream or the abundant table.

I love seeing our Creator God all around me as I go throughout my day. He's in the sunrises and the sunsets. He's in the touch of a loved one's hand. He's in the phone call from a friend. He's in the cool breeze as I walk. He's in a table filled with food and a house that shelters me. He's in the big moments ... and in the small little blessings, too. I just need to keep my eyes - and my heart - open to Him.

As you look through the images, I hope you'll listen to the words and melody of Christian artist Laura Story's Perfect Peace (Just click on the underlined song title to listen. )

Wishing you the peace that you find only in the Good Shepherd.

Psalm 23: A Psalm of David

¹ The LORD is my shepherd;

I shall not want.


² He makes me to lie down in green pastures;


He leads me beside the still waters.
³ He restores my soul;


He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.


⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;


For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.


⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;


My cup overflows.

⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

***

It may be a stretch to translate PEACE to PIECE.

But for the food part of Food for Thought this month, try a PIECE of homemade Banana Bread. (Click on the underlined title to go to the recipe.) It's a recipe from a cookbook compiled by the ladies of my childhood church, which just closed its doors in June.

Or make this easy Texas Sheet Cake. It makes a big cake, so you'll be able to share a PIECE with friends and family!

The recipe is similar to the chocolate sheet cake recipe everyone seems to have. It was one of the cakes we served this summer at a church baby shower.

My daughter made it for a very special announcement for our family this summer. Click here to read about the Best Cake EVER!