by Helen Roenfeldt

Created on: July 02, 2007

I don't know how many times I've known speakers to address the subject of sheep, shepherds and their place in Scripture. It's a favorite topic among Christians and appropriately so. King David was a shepherd. Jesus taught about sheep on several occasions. Even many like myself, devoid of any rural background, seem drawn to the metaphors of pastoral settings and calm feelings when we hear the familiar, comforting verses of Psalm 23 or the story of the Good Shepherd. I'm not even offended when I am compared to a dumb, defenseless animal who overeats, wanders aimlessly and generally doesn't have a clue about taking care of it's self. Maybe sometimes we are able to easily accept the truth about ourselves. At least until we hear a truth that goes too deep...something that touches who we really are.

I meet with a small group of people twice a month. We call ourselves "Seekers". We are seeking more of God's truth and more Christ-likeness in our lives. I got both of those in a good dose of humility recently during a discussion about the sheep and the shepherds in the Christmas story.

We were all sharing our "significant" but not-first-hand knowledge about sheep when a new member spoke up. Michael had just immigrated from South Africa and we were all getting to know him. Most of his family had not yet joined him and we were learning about his ancestry, culture and personal history with great interest. Michael said that when he was young he spent many vacation days in the countryside with an uncle who was a sheep rancher. Once, he related, during lambing season there was one particular young lamb that had an unusual propensity for wandering away. The shepherd patiently gathered this erring youngster in many times, but the willful little lamb continued to go his own way. At the end of one of it's frequent excursions, the shepherd picked up his wayward charge, held it to his chest and broke one of it's legs. My friend was stunned! Why would his patient, kind uncle do such a thing! Seeing Michael's young face frozen in disbelief, the uncle explained. "Now this lamb will become a leader. I will have to feed it, care for it, and carry it everywhere while it's leg mends. This lamb can't go anywhere without me. It will know my voice, my scent, my expressions and my gestures, even my heartbeat. It will never stray again, and best of all it will stay close by me and help lead the flock."

Now, I was stunned! How I saw myself in that young lamb! Not just the sweet, dumb, overeating wanderer; but the broken, pathetic creature who had to be carried and fed and reassured. I saw now, that often the "broken legs" in my life were more than the course of human events and failings or even "what the Lord allowed to aid in my growth". Suddenly I knew that many of those broken times were the discipline to those that the Lord loves. My own "brokeness" often came when I needed to be kept close, to hear His voice, to know His fragrance, His expressions and gestures, His very heartbeat, so that I will never wander away again...so that I might help lead others to Him.

I understand. I have been broken at the hand of the Good Shepherd, not for His pleasure or my punishment, but for my gain and His glory! What greater joy and humiliation can there be than to know how much Jesus loves each one of us...even me, the often clueless, wandering, overeating, broken and needy but very, very grateful sheep.

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