LET'S TALK SHEEP!!

I have sheep. Five of them, named Carmel, OB, Seven, Shaggy, and Dinky. Back before I had sheep, I didn't really understand why Jesus would compare us to sheep. But now that I have sheep, I get it!

So let me tell you about sheep, & how they're like us humans...

#1: Sheep always want the grass on the OTHER side of the fence, & they'll push down the fence & stomp all over it to get to that other grass.
Then, they'll decide that their grass was better after all, so they'll stomp down the fence in another place, just to get back to where they started.
~~We fight for our own way too, ignoring what we know is right to get what we want. We shove aside our consciences, that still, small voice inside of each of us. Then, when we're in a mess, we cry out to God to save us from the consequences of our waywardness.

#2: Sheep don't think about predators until one is staring them in the face, licking its chops.
~~We aren't very good at thinking about consequences either, until we're sinking in the quicksand. One of the statements that I'm known for is, "It seemed like a good idea at the time..." Sin can be very seductive & enjoyable...until you realize that you’re a pigeon among falcons who want to EAT you! Satan rejoices when we fail & fall.

#3: Sheep make a lot of noise when they don't get their way.
Carmel is my dominant ewe, & I ALWAYS know when she's unhappy, because she is LOUD! If I don’t give her corn when I come in from work, I hear it IMMEDIATELY. Even when I DO give her corn, she harangues me all the way into the house, because she wants even more...
~~We too are really good at complaining about what we have, or don’t have. Or we silently complain even while we're obeying God's teachings & commands, as if He can't hear our very thoughts!!

#4: Sheep recognize who's in charge most of the time, especially when it's a Border Collie!!
My Border Collie Jet kicks sheep's butts, even at almost 14! He knows that they’re prone to wandering, so his job is keeping them where I want them to be. And they know not to cross him, because he’ll enforce his will on them & he isn’t always gentle about it!
~~Sometimes we need spiritual Border Collies to keep us in line. Proverbs 27:17 says “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another”. There are times when we need someone to call us on our behavior & tell us when we’re out of line too! Whether it’s a spiritual leader, a friend, or a mate, sometimes WE need to have our butts kicked too!

#5: Sheep aren't very bright, so they need a shepherd, to keep them from doing something stupid that has terrible consequences.
~~ I'm not always known as the brightest bulb in the batch. There is no doubt in my mind that I need a Shepherd to guide my way & protect me from the many hazards on the way...

In John 10:14, 27, Jesus said, "I am the Good Shepherd; I know My own, & My own know Me...My sheep hear My voice, & I know them, & they follow Me."

Even tho we are very like sheep, we have been given a Good Shepherd to keep & protect us. Rest in that protection & be at peace.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

~~”Come Thou Fount” by Robert Robertson (1758)