little shepherds in
distress
Monday,
May 12, 2014
1:01 PM
He flees because he is a hireling and
cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own
know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life
for the sheep. John 10:13-15
How often have I entrusted my life to a mere hireling.
Every time I get attracted to the glitz and promises of the wordly things, I’d
get excited and fixated. I readily let go of the arms that hold me still and
run away from the source of real security. Only when I stumble and hurt my knee
do I get back to my senses and start looking back. Such a pain yet I seem not
to learn. But still, always, I find the Lord’s loving arms ready to receive me
back and walk on with me. Without even a need to say anything, He readily
understands what I cannot say out of too much guilt and humiliation. With a
loving look and a smile that says “I understand”, He wipes away my shame.
As we move along, I can’t help but think about the
false shepherds in my life, the hirelings who did not really care. They were up
and proud when all was bright. When the storm set in, like a puff of smoke,
they vanish in thin air. I am often ready to judge and condemn, but perhaps
today calls for a different choice. My Shepherd is out looking for the lost.
Perhaps I am called to do the same. Aren’t we all hirelings with the natural
tendency to save our own skin in the presence of danger? Aren’t we all capable
of denying the Lord, more than three times in our lifetime? Have I not, at some
point, been false and selfish?
But before I run and play the role, it may be best to
remind myself that before I can share in the Shepherd’s task, I may first need
to refuse to be a hireling. To labor not for money but to share in the love of
the Shepherd. Being true and dependable requires more than enough strength to
fulfill. It is not a task for the faint-hearted. To the many who failed,
including me, surely the Lord continues to seek and find. That He may bring all
back to His Kingdom.
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