Luke 2:10-11

¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

"Fear not" were the first words that were spoken by the angel of the Lord, who came upon this group of shepherds, when they were abiding in the fields one night, keeping watch over a flock of sheep close to the town of Bethlehem. It was only natural for the shepherds to be terrified at the sight of an angel, not to mention the sudden, bright light in the sky. I am sure if that were us that we would feel the same as the shepherds! We see here that the angel spoke to calm the shepherds and refocus their attention on the proclamation of the gospel THE GOOD NEWS! Everyone likes to receive good news, don't they? The Bible is like that. It is good news sent from God to you and I. We can read about God's plan and purpose for our lives. We can find out how much He loves us. That's always good news! To know that we are loved!

• When we are afraid how can we refocus our attention on the proclamation of the gospel like the shepherds did in this passage?

• What keeps us from embracing the message of Jesus with the same abandonment as the shepherds? How can we daily remind ourself of the good news?