Do You Remember?

That night some shepherds were in the fields outside the village, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them. They were terribly frightened, but the angel reassured them. "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news of great joy for everyone! The Savior--yes, the Messiah, the Lord--has been born tonight in Bethlehem, the city of David! (Luke 2:8-11 NLV).

Had you picked up a daily newspaper in 1809, you would have read the big news that Napoleon I, emperor of France, had conquered Austria at Wagram, annexed the Illyrian Provinces (now part of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), and abolished the Papal States.

I know you are now asking yourself, “so what? Who cares?” Stay with me for a few more lines! In that same year, in France, Louis Braille, who devised a way for the blind to read, was born. And in Germany, - Felix Mendelssohn, the great composer of symphonies, was born. In England, William Gladstone, the four-time Prime Minister and the father of public education, was born; Alfred Lord Tennyson, the poet laureate of Great Britain, was born; and, Charles Darwin, the most influential scientist of the nineteenth century was born. In America, Edgar Allen Poe, the master poet and storyteller, was born; Oliver Wendell Holmes, the writer and physician who developed surgical techniques still in use today, was born; and, Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President of the United States, was born. But at the end of the year 1809, the only event anyone thought to be important was Napoleon's conquest of Austria. That was the big news.

I wonder who today really remembers the "big news" of 1809? Hardly anyone. Napoleon's conquest is just a tiny blip on the big screen of history. But the world was changed forever by a few seemingly insignificant births that took place that same year.

The year Jesus was born, most people missed it. Only a few were aware of the eternal implications of his presence in a manger in Bethlehem. And so it is with all of God's work. Most of it is behind the scenes, hardly ever visible. It rarely makes headlines; instead it makes a huge difference in the lives of people because it is eternal.

Do you remember the day you became a Christian? How ordinary did that day start? How extraordinary has it become in your life? Some of you may find that last question a little more difficult to answer than others. The reason may be that you have not taken the time to really take notice of the work of grace in your life. The mundane and ordinary events of life have choked out the significance of God’s presence in you. Take a moment today and revisit the Babe of Bethlehem. Let His life fill you with new energy.