"What Do I Do Now?", they asked.

   I woke up this morning thinking about the shepherds that had participated in the Christmas story. What had their lives been like in the days following that eventful night? They had a major part in the plot of the story on that Christmas night, but were they able to let all of that affect the way they lived in their days and years beyond that? As the years passed, did those memories grow dimmer until they wondered if it had really happened?

   There is no way to know. They were probably illiterate peasants and would have had no way to preserve any record of the angel's visit and the trip to the manger stall. I'm sure they would have told the story to all who would listen in the days that followed, but, when nothing else happened, would they have been believed in the long run?

   Were they still in the area a couple of years later, when Herod had all the babies in the area killed, trying to get rid of "the new king"? Did they perhaps have a little boy who was murdered in that awful time? How would they have put those two events, one holy and the other horrific, together in their story?

   Then there come the quiet years. Years with no word, no angels, no manger, no news of a great man arising in the land, one who comes in the name of the Lord. Jesus grows up in a town far from Bethlehem, and they can't even watch those years unfold. Thirty years from the manger to the days of John the Baptist. They probably did not even live to see any of these ministry years, and would they have even put those events into perspective with that first Christmas?

   The question must have come to them, in the days immediately after the birth of Jesus, "What do I do now, with this experience that I had?"

   But did that same question linger in those years of silence, until they passed away? Did they continue to wonder and to tell the story? Would anyone listen? Belief in that miracle might be possible for others in those first days, but, when nothing else came, would those shepherds become a laughing stock, until they just quit talking about it?

   God gave them the privilege to be there on that night. No doubt He could keep that memory alive and let them relive the miracle for years to come, telling the story over and over again. They could have spoken with such conviction that, for them at least, the actuality of it stayed fresh and exciting but, when nothing happened, what about their reputation?

   How does all of that relate to me? The shepherds did not have another Christmas a year later to remind them, like I have to look forward to. But, even for me, what do I do in the period of time between the celebrations of the Day?

   This Christmas season was great. The music, the services, the opportunities of giving and receiving, the quiet times of reflection, and the walks of remembrance all made it special. But how now do I live? Do I file those memories away and wait for some more next year?

   I wonder about those shepherds, and God knows their impact and their story, but I still have the opportunity to live mine, this day and those that follow.

   God, help me to do just that.

   Maybe one day, in the eternal future, I'll get a chance to ask one of those Jewish shepherds and get "the rest of the Story", but, in the meantime, let me live it.