April 08, 2009
Lost Sheep
When traveling to a neighboring town I saw sheep on the high dessert hillside and the herder’s camp trailer off in the distance. A few days later I had to make the same trip, but this time all the sheep and the camp were gone…no doubt looking for greener pastures. A spring blizzard was in the making and there in a gully beside the road stood one lone ewe huddled behind some of chico brush. Her head was bowed low to the ground as she braced against the wind and snow. Certainly she would die if she were left alone. Jesus said, “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?” (Lk 15:4 NIV) All of us at one time were lost sheep, but unlike the absent herder, our Shepherd knew we were lost and came to find us.
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Gail;
-----Gee, sheep left behind, that sounds familiar. I knew some shepherds who were driving their flock on, but not necessarily to greener pastures. They were on a quest for more sheep. “One Sunday morning I looked around,” one of them would often say, “and I noticed just how many old sheep we had. The numbers in this flock are going to dwindle away, not because sheep are leaving, but because they are dying.” So off they took the flock in search of younger sheep. It was ok with them if the old sheep tagged along, as long as they did not get in the way or hold back their progress. And some old sheep kept up with the shepherds quite well. But the path this flock then traveled was clearly marked by many lonely old sheep huddled behind Chico bushes, weathering the storm the best they could. The shepherds not only didn’t have enough care to search for these poor sheep, but they had even told some of them to get lost. It is a small wonder what big ideas can do in the narrow minds of puffed up men.
-----Now those abandoned sheep have been found by other, more caring, shepherds, and they have been led to a green pasture of good food and calm waters. The uncaring shepherds have found what they wanted too. They have a nice, big flock all full of young bucks, prissy ewes, and romping little lambs. That is good. The Lord needs His sheep. And He knows the flocks are living in imperfect times and being led by imperfect shepherds, so He has a lot of mercy waiting for them all when they get home.
Love you all,
Steve Corey
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