God Still Starts With Shepherds

The announcement didn't go to the palace.

It didn't go to the priests in the temple. Not to the scholars studying scripture. Not to the religious leaders who had been waiting for the Messiah their entire lives.

Luke 2:8-11 (NKJV):

God announced the birth of His Son to shepherds.

Nobodies. Outsiders. People whose testimony wasn't even valid in court because they were considered unclean.

They weren't powerful. They weren't visible. They weren't important by any cultural standard.

But they were faithful.

And God introduces Himself through faithfulness, not status.

The Pattern Scripture Keeps Showing Us

This wasn't a one-time decision. It's a pattern woven throughout scripture.

Shepherds before kings.

David was in the fields watching sheep when Samuel came looking for the next king of Israel. His own family didn't even think to call him in from the pasture.

Fields before thrones.

Moses spent 40 years in the wilderness tending his father-in-law's flock before God met him at the burning bush.

Obedience before visibility.

Joseph was faithful in prison—managing other people's problems, interpreting dreams nobody cared about—before Pharaoh ever knew his name.

Quiet surrender before the announcement.

Mary was an unknown teenager in Nazareth when the angel appeared to her. She said yes in obscurity long before anyone would call her blessed.

Ordinary work before the calling.

The disciples were fishermen. Tax collectors. Regular people doing regular work when Jesus said, "Follow Me."

God tends to trust people who already know how to carry responsibility quietly.

He doesn't start with the platform. He starts with the person. And the person is always formed in the field, not on the stage.

What A Shepherds’ Work Looks Like Today

Shepherd work is unseen but vital.

It's showing up when the results are small. Doing the work that doesn't get reposted. Staying faithful when nobody is watching.

It's the creative grinding through draft after draft, building a portfolio nobody's seen yet.

It's the parent making meals, changing diapers, reading bedtime stories—shaping a life even though the world doesn't applaud it.

It's the builder laying foundation after foundation, knowing most people only notice the finished house.

It's the business owner making calls, refining systems, serving customers one at a time while competitors seem to explode overnight.

It's the servant in the church setting up chairs, greeting people at the door, praying for others in the margins.

It's the person rebuilding after failure—getting up, trying again, doing the next right thing even though the past still stings.

Shepherd work is unseen but vital.

It's the work below the surface before you see the sprout and the fruit.

My Own Shepherd Season

I started this newsletter, Crew Notes, in February of this year.

I didn't know who would read it. I didn't know how far it would go. I just knew I was supposed to write.

So I did.

Over the past 15 months:

• I grew my YouTube channel from 583 to over 1,000 subscribers

• Built my Instagram from 0 to 570 followers

• Grew my Threads account from 0 to 2,686 followers

• Grew my email list from 0 to 286 subscribers

• Increased my Spotify monthly listeners from 586 to 4,635

• Went from 0 to 164 radio plays

• Generated over 2,500 Shazams

To get there, I posted 101 times on Instagram. Uploaded 80 videos to YouTube. Wrote 47 newsletter articles. Over 300 threads. Released 5 albums and EPs. Dropped 8 singles.

I'm not listing those numbers to flex. I'm listing them to show you what stewardship looks like.

I didn't chase growth. I practiced faithfulness.

And here's the truth: those numbers haven't equaled any huge monetary rewards yet. They're indicators of movement, not maturity. The fruit hasn't come. The sprout is barely visible.

But Myron Golden says it best: "If it's not working for you, it's working on you."

During this season, I learned how to write articles and posts that people actually read. I learned about lighting and camera work. I learned how artists are building communities in 2025 and beyond. I figured out sync licensing, playlisting strategies, what numbers actually drive growth, and what numbers are just vanity.

I created posts nobody liked. Books nobody read. Products nobody bought. Videos nobody watched.

And I kept going.

Because shepherd work isn't about the applause. It's about the obedience.

Thank You for Walking With Me

This newsletter isn't numbers on a screen. It's people.

Real people who open emails. Who read. Who reply. Who share. Who've told me that something I wrote helped them see God more clearly, or gave them permission to keep going, or reminded them they're not alone.

Thank you.

Thank you for being here. For walking with me through this shepherd season. For seeing the work even when it was small.

You didn't have to. But you did.

And I don't take that lightly.

Start the Thing

Now let me ask you something:

What have you been sitting on?

What idea has been circling in your mind? What project has God placed on your heart that you keep putting off because it doesn't feel ready yet?

Stop waiting for clarity before obedience.

Stop measuring yourself by visibility.

Stop telling yourself you're not good enough yet.

You have to be willing to be bad at something before you can be good. That's the entrance fee.

We are made in God's image. That means we are, by nature, creative. So create. Whatever He's put in your heart—create it.

Even if you aren't good yet. Especially if you aren't good yet.

Because you cannot control the outputs. You can only control the inputs and the work you put in.

Gaudy numbers aren't the goal. Faithfulness is.

If you're stuck, start with one thing and learn it well. Then see where it takes you.

If you don't know where to start, start anyway. The field will teach you.

Be the light in your space. Shine wherever God has placed you on this earth.

The shepherds didn't ask to be chosen. They were just doing their job. Then angels showed up.

Your breakthrough might not look like what you expect. But if you're faithful in the field, God knows where to find you.

Don't despise the shepherd season.

It's where God does His best work.

That’s it for today

keep JOY, live Disciplined