Lost Sheep

Whoever said it was quiet in the country? I am blessed to live in beautiful Cumbria, the northern-most county in England. I am surrounded by fields and fells, which at this time of year are full of sheep and their lambs. And do they make a noise! I always find springtime so wonderful, an awakening after the winter, a real time of rebirth, renewal, resurrection. This spring has been particularly beautiful with glorious sunshine, which is unusual for normally rainy Cumbria. I am so aware of how blessed I am to live in such a place, when others are living in cities with no outlook and no places to walk and stretch their legs during this time of lockdown.

I was working in my garden the other day and the racket from the birds singing their hearts out, and the sheep and their lambs calling for each other was incredible. In a field of three hundred or more sheep and lambs, it is not surprising that mothers and babies sometimes get separated from each other and it is always amazing to me that they can find one another again in that crowd.

The Lord often speaks to me through His creation and through the sheep I see on a daily basis – after all, we are compared to sheep in the Bible. As I heard the noise of the lost trying to find each other, the Lord reminded me of all the lost souls who are seeking, and perhaps questioning, at this time.

I heard a woman on the radio asking if the coronavirus was proof that there is no God. While I certainly don’t believe God sent it, I do believe He has allowed it to make us think about how far we have strayed away from Him. Some people are only too ready to declare, as a source of pride almost, that they have no faith, but just maybe, as we are faced with the daily reality of death, others are beginning to question, “What is going to happen to me after death. Have I been good enough?” – for heaven, one assumes.

The answer is of course, no, nobody is ‘good enough’, but thank God, we have a Saviour, Jesus Christ, who paid the penalty of sin for us. We simply have to agree with His verdict on our sin, that we are guilty, repent of it, and invite Him to be Lord of our lives. It shouldn’t be that easy, because it cost Jesus so much pain and suffering, but because of that, we can go free. Hallelujah!

I know that most people reading this are already committed to Jesus, but just maybe there are one or two who have never made that commitment, or who know friends who have not, and my prayer is that this will speak to them. Perhaps you need to recommit yourself – we all wander away from time to time. Just to know that we are loved by our heavenly Father and are saved by the sacrifice of His precious Son is a wonderful comfort and gives us peace which passes all our understanding in these troubling days. He promises never to leave us even in death’s dark vale.

I pray that you will know that peace and comfort whatever lies ahead.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and have made many mistakes in my life. Please forgive me. Thank You so much that You died so that I might be set free. I now offer myself to You, all my thoughts, actions and feelings, and invite You to be Lord in every area. Please fill me (afresh) with Your Holy Spirit. Thank You, Jesus. Amen.