A Lost Lamb

I was walking along the side of a field one day recently and was enjoying watching three young lambs playing together. I noticed that two of them had the same number painted on their backs and that their mother, who also had that number on her back, was close by keeping a watchful eye on them. The third lamb had a different number and its mother was far away on the other side of the field. As I approached with our dog, the first two lambs ran to the security of their mother and started tucking in to the reassuring comfort of her milk. The third lamb, however, was left alone, looking isolated, afraid and hungry. It started bleating pitifully, calling for its mother. Immediately, from the other side of the field, a reply came. It recognised its mother’s voice and bounded off to be reunited with her, looking greatly relieved.

I felt the Lord reminding me from this how easily we can be distracted and stray from His presence, particularly if we are being influenced wrongly by other people. This little lamb was having fun with friends and hadn’t noticed how far it had strayed from the safety and security of its mother. Psalm 91 makes it clear that if we remain in the shelter of the Most High, making Him our dwelling place, then we will be kept safe and secure, with no need to fear.

However, the reality is that all of us have strayed at times in our lives. Isaiah 53:6 says: ‘We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way’. The good news is that there’s always a way back if we repent and call upon the LORD, and the Bible holds many promises that God will answer us when we cry out to Him. Psalm 145:18-19 says: ‘The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfils the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them’. The little lamb had an immediate response from its mother to its plaintive cry. How much more will our Heavenly Father respond to us His children when we cry out to Him!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, forgive me for the times I’ve strayed from the safety and security of Your presence and allowed myself to be distracted by other things. Thank You that You’re always ready to forgive when I confess and repent, and that You always hear me when I call on You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.