ADVENT
The Shepherd’s Story

“No one wants to play with me.“

It is the cry of the human heart. 

The sting of exclusion burns deep and long. 

I know it well.
Very few aspire to be shepherds
Like me.
Who wants a job that others mock?
I have seen those looks.
I have heard the sarcasm. 
I have watched the doors close. 
Society and religion have no value for people like me.

And so on this night I am bewildered. 

I sit in wonder, “Why me?” 
Wasn’t there someone more fitting?
Should outcasts be the first to know? 
What about us prompted the concert? 

I look at his parents
And those questions continue.
Shouldn’t his father be a king or general?
Shouldn’t his mom know how to be a mom?
I wonder, “Why them?”

Is there a message here?
Should the outcast feel a sense of belonging?
Is there something holy about being left out?
That You would choose such an entrance?

And to think that You would choose people like me,
To be right in the center of Your story,
It amazes me.