“I’ll just be a minute,” I said to my husband as I stepped out the front door. It had become a custom to stargaze from the front lawn before bedtime. From the center of our front lawn, I held up my iPhone and focused on one particularly bright star, wondering which it might be. Skyview App allows one to focus their iPhone camera on a star which it will then identify.
No more wondering. No more guessing. “Jupiter,” I whispered to the night. Such glow! Such twinkle! So unusually bright against the dark night sky. It was as if one had poked a hole through a backlit canopy of deep blue velvet to let the light shine through. As wonderful as it was, however, I pondered how small and insignificant it was in contrast to the experience of “certain poor shepherds in fields” one incredibly holy night.
THE HEAVENLY HOST APPEARED
There they were, star gazing and sheep grazing below the same sky of deep blue velvet in pastoral astonishment! Interrupted, not by a just the appearance of a bright star, but an angelic Heavenly Host, brighter than anyone could possibly set their mind to imagine. Greater and brighter than any App would be able to explain away.
NO MORE WONDERING
Born is the King of Israel the angels proclaimed! How grateful I am for the skies that behold daily beauty and miraculous heavenly announcements. Noel! Noel! The angels did say. How I wish I could have been a shepherd under the stars that magnificent night. How blessed to have been a witness to the announcement of the birth of our dear Savior, declaring, Jesus is born! God is with us! No more wondering. No more guessing.
The First Noel the Angels did say was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay
In fields where they lay keeping their sheep on a cold winter’s night that was so deep
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel! Born is the King of Israel!