The Shepherd's Shepherd

King David was a shepherd at heart and, as king, he shepherded the nation of Israel. In a way, his care for his people was a living picture of God's care for us. 

Asaph, in Psalm 78, wrote of how Israel had been unfaithful to God. They lied to Him, rebelled against Him, grieved Him, and refused to believe Him or obey Him. 

When God disciplined them, they crawled back, begging for forgiveness. "But their heart was not steadfast." They wanted symptom relief, not the cure repentance could bring. 

Despite all they had done, God chose to give Israel a good king, and He gave them David.

"So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, and guided them with his skilled hands." Psalm 78:72 nasb

David knew what was important to sheep, and he provided that same care to his people.

Protection.

Provision.

Peace.

Paths of righteousness.

It was a picture of the care God had given to him. 

When I'm overwhelmed with life and the uncertainty of literary pursuits, I try to remember that God offers the same care to me. 

Always vigilant. Always caring. Always prepared to fight off enemies. Always ready with the provision that's needed.

No matter what we face, our God can handle it. He can give us peace in the midst of our trials, victory in our battles, provision in our need. We have only to turn to Him with our whole heart.

Today, let's remember the words of the shepherd boy:

The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures:

he leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

For His name's sake. 

Psalm 23:1-3 nasb

God can handle whatever comes our way. He wants to be our shepherd, too, and He will be, if we will follow Him.

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photo courtesy of freeimages.com

In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: The Sin That Wrecked a King (http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-sin-that-wrecked-king.html)

#theLordismyshepherd #disciple #follow 

Finding Christmas: The Joy of Relationship

I spent several years working full-time as a potter. Of all the pieces I made, one of my favorites was a shepherd holding a lamb. The simple mold captured a look of tenderness on the shepherd's face as he gazed at his little lamb in his arms. That small figure always come to mind when I think of our relationship with Jesus, our Good Shepherd. 

Isaiah wrote that the Lord would come with might and bring His reward with Him. 

"Like a shepherd He will tend his flock. In His arm He will gather the lambs, and carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes." (Isaiah 40:11 nasb)

He was speaking of Jesus and His relationship with His followers. We are the sheep of His pastures and He tenderly cares for us as a shepherd cares for his flock.

Isaiah described the "reward" of God in clear terms the people of Israel could easily understand. They knew about sheep and shepherds. They understood the relationship between them, so they could also understand the "reward" Isaiah described. 

The relationship IS the reward God offers His people.

If we hope to find a true celebration of Christmas, we must start as sheep in need of a shepherd, and begin with the most basic of relationships. Sheep and shepherd.

Having a Good Shepherd is the best possible life for a sheep. 

Read the relationship Isaiah described again. He will tend His flock. Gather His little lambs into His bosom. Gently lead. Tenderly care. Isaiah wasn't describing an antagonistic relationship. He wasn't describing something hard or unpleasant. 

Isaiah was describing a relationship that leads the sheep into the best pastures. The clearest water. The safest shelter.

There's only one requirement for this kind of relationship, and it's not optional. 

Sheep follow.

This Christmas season, begin by embracing the relationship God offers, the reward He brings. Allow Him to gather you, tend you, lead you, love you. In return, follow Him. You'll soon find that it's the sweetest relationship of all.

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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: The Best Advent of All, Finding Christmas: Something Better than Stuff, Finding Christmas: Setting a Goal, Finding Christmas: When Life is Less than Perfect, Finding Christmas: Clear Vision, Finding Christmas: Making Choices that Count, and Finding Christmas: Truth, Tradition, and Choice.

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: When Life is Less than Perfect

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#shepherdandsheep #GoodShepherd #Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple

photo courtesy of freeimages.com

Grateful heart: Maggie Protects her Master

I had written for hours and was exhausted from being inside the head of one of my main characters. He's not a nice person yet, and I don't know how he stands himself. The Wonder Dogs and I had gone outside for a break and were sitting on the patio.

When car tires crunched on gravel, both dogs were instantly alert. I assumed it was Sam, coming to walk them. After a few minutes of gravel crunching, I realized the car was coming closer to the house than our much-loved neighbor usually does. It wasn't Sam, after all.

It was the meter reader. More precisely, it was the meter reader's car with an apprentice meter reader at the wheel. Maggie was out of my lap like a bullet from a gun, barking and racing for her target. She did not like this new meter reader one bit. She barked non-stop, circling him and getting ever closer. She was so frantic that I worried she would bite him. 

It was only after he finished and returned to his car that I realized how thoroughly Maggie had tried to protect me. Maggie weighs 13 pounds. The meter reader weighed at least 150 pounds. She was badly outmatched, but she never backed down. Instead, she positioned herself in between the perceived danger and her master. 

If that meter reader wanted to hurt me, he would have to go through Maggie to do it.

I've pondered the ferocity of her protection the last few hours, and I'm still stunned and grateful. (Also very glad she didn't bite the meter reader.) There was nothing she wouldn't do to protect me.

The verses that sustained me through the worst time of my life are from Exodus 14. The children of Israel were trapped between the Egyptian army and the Red Sea. They were terrified and didn't know which way to go. Either way seemed to offer certain destruction. 

"But Moses said to the people, 'Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians who you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent." Ex 14:13, 14

 Maggie's ferocity was a picture of our Lord in action, but He is no midget-fighter. He, too, loves us beyond all measure. He, too, fights for us against all our foes. When the children of Israel were in trouble, He positioned Himself between them and their enemies. He fought for them as they crossed safely through the Red Sea.

The Psalmist understood this beautiful picture of going before and standing between. In Psalm 23, David wrote of the Good Shepherd's leading and watch care. He goes before. Danger must pass through Him to get to His sheep, and He is an impenetrable guard. With Goodness and Mercy following along behind, we are cocooned and sheltered from any danger. 

No matter what comes our way, God is there. He is with us. He is guarding and protecting us. Will we encounter trouble? Sorrow? Grief? Yes. This is a fallen world filled with fallen and sinful people. Neither trouble, sorrow, nor grief cannot defeat us, for God Himself will turn tragedy into triumph and defeat into the kind of glorious victory we can only imagine.

He will fight for us, and we are safe. No matter what comes. 

Rest in that truth today. Don't forget to pray for all those around our world who have encountered the world's trouble and are struggling with the grief of loss. 
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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Grateful Heart: Worldwide Kindness,  Remembering Paris,  Persevering for Paris, Resisting Evil, Praying for Peace, Answered Prayers in Disguise, and Grateful Heart: Mizpah.

The most viewed post of the last week was Remembering Paris

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#Heishere #Godishere #Lordismyshepherd #hope #GoodShepherd

Considering the lilies: Choosing freedom from fear, worry, selfishness

"Consider the lilies, how they grow... And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.                                       (Luke 12:27, 29-32 NASB)

The lily series continues, mainly because I've enjoyed learning about the lilies.  I hate to leave it. We began this series by considering the lily bulb. In case you missed any part of the series, you can click on the links to catch up. We've also considered lily propagation,  lily's disposition, true lilies and the importance of the name, the importance of planting the lily bulb deep in the ground, the different varieties of lilies, and  living the lily life. Yesterday, we examined seeking the kingdom. 

Today, we look at the "DO NOT's". The world often thinks of religion in terms of "thou shalt not's". To the unbeliever, Christianity seems more like a list of don'ts than do's, a divine dictatorship rather than a relationship. If they only knew... 

The "don't's" of faith are for our protection and generally come with a "do" alternative. (Maybe not in the same verse, but if you look for it, you can find it.)

There are three "don't's" in this passage and they aren't what most people think of when they hear "thou shalt not". 

1. Do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink. 

 The word translated as "seek" is not a casual hide and seek game. We might think of it as  a demanding search, determined to have what we want. Jesus is warning us against demanding a certain kind of consumption. 

The implication is for us to be content with simple fare. We may want caviar and lobster, but that doesn't mean we should have it. Let's give up our selfishness and our sense of entitlement.

The most commonly eaten food in the world is rice. The diet in many countries is composed largely of rice. Not caviar. Not filet mignon. We would likely improve our health if we did not "seek" (demand) a certain diet, but were satisfied with a simple diet of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Okay, lean meats, too for the omnivores among us. (My physician side is shouting this morning.) 

2. Do not keep worrying.

Jesus knows us, doesn't He? We don't just worry for a moment. We keep on worrying. Agonizing, soul-wrenching worry. We fill our lives with what if's and miss the here and now. It's not the way we were intended to live. 

Jesus told us not to keep worrying because there is no need to worry. Our Heavenly Father has the world in His capable hands. He can handle our lives. So take every thought captive. Make a choice to obey. Stop worrying. Stop it. 

Here's a motivator for those of us who have trouble with worry. Jesus told us not to keep worrying. When I refuse to obey Jesus by continuing to worry, it is sin.

How do we stop worrying? Take our thoughts captive. Stop rehearsing our worry. Speak truth. Quote Scripture aloud. Pray. 

3. Do not be afraid.

I love this particular admonition. "Do not be afraid, little flock." The Good Shepherd is speaking here to His lambs and reminds me of Psalm 23. "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want." As our Shepherd, He has accepted the responsibility of providing for our needs. We are not to allow fear to drive our actions. Momentary fear should drive us to Christ. In His presence, fear flees. 

Will we stop doing what Jesus says not to do? We must, so that we can live free of selfishness, entitlement, demanding, worry, and fear. 

Choose to live as free men and women. It's the way Christ intended us to live.

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Our Father, Our Shepherd and our Lord, forgive me for my selfish demanding, my worry, my fear. Help me to trust you and to follow you. Help me to live free, for You bought that freedom with Your blood. In Jesus name, Amen.

Confessing Jesus Before Men: I AM the Good Shepherd

"And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God; but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God. "(Luke 12:8-9 NASB)

"Confess before men" is a phrase that, in Greek, means to say the same the same things about Jesus that He says about Himself. In this series, we have reviewed the I AM's, including I AM the Bread of Life, I AM the Light of the World, I AM the Door, and I AM the Good Shepherd. (We started Good Shepherd in yesterday's post but I had a moment of distraction and we covered pastures instead.) Today, we're looking at Good Shepherd, part 2.

After a quarter century of caring for livestock, I learned a very important bit of information. The shepherd is critical to the health, comfort, and survival of the sheep. It is the shepherd that chooses the pasture when the livestock grazes, assures their safety, provides their grazing and grain, finds clean water, and grooms their coats and feet. A herd animal, left to its own devices, will not have the same quality of life, nor the same length of life, as an animal cared for by a loving shepherd.

Scripture is replete with images of God's people as sheep that are in desperate need of a compassionate and consistent shepherd. The images of Jesus as a shepherd are some of my favorite in Scripture. A shepherd defends his flock against all enemies, including wild enemies and marauders intent on stealing the sheep away. Our Good Shepherd, in His fight against the enemy of our soul, laid down His life for us, then rose again to conquer the one who would destroy us.

"I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep." John 10:11 NASB

It is the image of the shepherd leading the sheep that helps me understand the tenderness with which our Lord cares for us. I've had animals that followed willingly with little training and I've had animals that wouldn't follow, no matter how carefully I tended them. The ones who followed made life easier and more pleasant for both of us. The good news is we have a Shepherd who guides us with skill and cares for us with integrity. He never fails. He is never distracted.

So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them with his skillful hands. (Psalms 78:72 NASB)

My favorite image of Jesus, however, is that of a shepherd gathering the lambs into his arms. When a lamb is born, it must be trained to know the shepherd. Gentle handling will accustom the lamb to the shepherd and teach the lamb that the shepherd is the "hand that feeds". When the lamb knows the shepherd, it is easier to teach the lamb to follow. 

In that same way, we have a Shepherd who gathers us into His arms, holds us close to His heart, so that we can know Him, so that we will follow Him when He sits up down and allows us to stand.

Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes. (Isaiah 40:11 NASB)

It is only when the sheep follow the shepherd that they enjoy the tender care he provides. Just as David wrote, "The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not want," (Ps 23:1) we can count on our Shepherd to recognize and meet every need. Can our Shepherd count on us, the sheep of His pasture, to follow? 

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Our Father and Shepherd, help me to follow close behind You. Keep me from straying away and protect me from all my enemies. Thank you for your tender care and abundant provision. In Jesus' name, amen.