The Good Shepherd

My wife and I love looking at sheep with their little lambs. As soon as the lamb is born, the motherly instinct kicks in and she takes protective care of her lamb, washing it, feeding it, and nurturing it. However, sometimes it all goes wrong for whatever reason, and the mother rejects her lamb, even aggressively so. The little lamb cannot understand why and continues to approach its mother, only to be continually rejected.

Some of you who are reading this ‘Seed’ know only too well what it feels like to be rejected by the one whom God intended to care for you. It causes much pain and hurt, and that sense of rejection is just as bad as physical pain to our soul. It can also lead us to believe that we are of little or no value and may even deserve to be cast aside.

However, in a farm setting, the shepherd is constantly watching out for their flock and are quick to react when they realise a lamb is rejected. They step in, take the lamb away and nurture it themselves, feeding it regularly and keeping it warm and safe. This is not a permanent thing, as at some point the lamb needs to be united with the flock. When it comes to feeding time for the flock as a whole and the shepherd calls to the sheep to come, it is the young sheep that have been nurtured by the shepherd that are quickest to respond to the voice they know only too well.

Jesus declares Himself to be the Good Shepherd. He knows and loves each and every one of His lambs. He knows you personally and wants you restored. He wants those broken places healed and for you to know Him as your true Heavenly Father who will never leave you nor forsake you. He wants you to know that you are of great value to Him because He gave His life for you to be able to truly know Him. While a parent or parents may have rejected you, He never will. He longs for you to respond to His voice and come running to Him in this assurance and this gives Him great pleasure when you do.

To truly hear and respond to your Saviour’s voice, you must choose to reject the voice of the enemy that tells you that you are not worthy. Allow God to enter the place of pain and renounce that sense of rejection. Today, why not invite the Good Shepherd into those deeply hurting places and accept His love for you as the lamb He came to rescue.