We are officially in the midst of the “in-between” week of Christmas and New Year’s Day. Feeling a little sad because Christmas is over?

What about the sights and sounds around you? I had dropped off a small gift to two of my fellow volunteers at our local senior center and was heading back to our car, where my husband was waiting. Somewhere nearby, outside one of the houses, two people were yelling at each other. They were so loud that my husband had rolled down his window and opened the car door on the driver’s side. “Do you need to call the police?” I asked him. “No. They are walking away,” he replied. One of the center’s staff had stepped outside for some air. “Oh, it’s okay. They are always yelling like that,” she explained.

How sad! The day after Christmas. “Did they forget Whose birthday we just celebrated? My heart ached for the masses whose normal fit the same mold. Later that day, I too was caught up in a disagreement, and I needed to ask for forgiveness. None of us is exempt. I had read several devotions over the last few days, and one spoke of the shepherds: “The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.” Luke 2:20 New Living Translation (NLT).

Did you get that? “The shepherds went back to their flocks…” But now everything had changed because of the message from the angels. The Savior of the world, the Messiah, had been born. From now on, life is brand new for all of us! There’s life, peace, joy, and love. Because of Jesus, we have hope, no matter what happens; He is with us. His name says so. Immanuel, our Savior and Lord, is forever with us.

As we move closer to a new year, look to the Lord to keep you in step with Him. Let Him guide your path as you look to Him in prayer, reading His Word, and fellowshipping with other believers in praise and worship.