Big Idea:
Responsibility is not a burden God puts on you—it is a gift He puts in you that produces joy when you live it out.

The angels announced the birth of Jesus not to kings or crowds, but to shepherds quietly doing their jobs in the fields. They weren’t chasing excitement. They weren’t escaping responsibility. They were being faithful—and that’s where joy met them.

This sermon challenges the idea that joy is found in escape, novelty, or comfort. While culture tells us joy is something we chase, Scripture shows us joy is something we discover when we faithfully steward what God has placed in our hands.

Joy is rooted in responsibility, not escape. God often meets His people not when they are running from what He’s called them to, but when they are obedient in obscure places. Like David tending sheep before slaying Goliath, or delivering bread before winning battles, joy is often hidden behind the responsibilities we’d rather avoid.

Responsibility gives life meaning. When we trade faithfulness for distraction, we lose joy. But when we commit to showing up—in our homes, our work, our relationships, our church—we find that joy emerges in the ordinary.

Advent reminds us that joy came to a manger, not a palace. To the faithful, not the famous. And that same joy—Jesus Himself—is present with us today in the mundane, the unseen, and the responsibilities God has entrusted to us.

Joy is found when we show up.
Joy is found in obedience.
Joy is found in Jesus.