Today appears to be the quiet before the storm – or so we are told.  It pretty out there, but the next few days the weatherman says to expect cold, some rain and snow.  Okay by me.

Phantom and Abby got into it last night.  Abby was sleeping in the rocking chair, normally Phantom rises on his haunches to make sure there isn’t another cat up there – it there is he walks away and finds someplace else.

For some reason, he chose to just jump onto the chair last night and got a real surprise.  He jumped right on Abby who immediately went after him with claws and hissing – he had this surprised look on his face and then took off. 

Poor Abby laid there and kept looking around with a puzzled look as if to ask, what happened?

Gotta get your entertainment where ya find it.

Jeremiah 23:3-5 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.

⁴ And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord.

⁵ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

I was reading Amos this morning right after I read a devotional talking about Moses – both men were shepherds and both were used by God to lead His people.  He used another shepherd to lead His people, David.  Abraham was a great and wealthy man – he was also a shepherd; and called the Father of God’s people.

Then of course the first group of people who learned of the birth of Jesus were the shepherds in the field tending their flocks.

Adam and Abel and others who had significant impact on God’s word and commands were both shepherds.

Jesus has been described as the Good Shepherd.

Why did shepherds play such a large part in God’s schemes?

They are solitary; they live a lonely life with few other humans to share their thoughts.  They would be the last people we might expect for God to use.

I mean after all, they were of a ‘lower’ class, not big businessmen or Jewish leaders.  They didn’t earn their living by working around others and/or being the foremen or managers.

They are not in the flow of things so they have little impact on politics or even religion, thus little input into the decisions that influence man.

So why shepherds?

A shepherd’s first responsibility is to his flock.  He must account for all heads.

He must help those in need – getting caught in brambles, birth of a kid, bulling by another, the danger of predators both wild and domestic.

He must make sure they are well fed and have enough water.

He is fully responsible for them, without him they are apt to find themselves in grave danger; while they are far from being stupid, they do need a leader to guide and protect them.

Shepherds fill that void.

Now all that is well and good – but why does God use shepherds in such a dynamic fashion as He did with Moses and David?

Yes, Moses was a prince and raised with the highest educational sources available at the time – but he spent 40 more years as a shepherd with little influence on the world.

As I thought of this, I realized that some of the reasons may be that they did their job.

They tended their sheep.  They cared for them; watched over them.  Drove off and even had to kill predators.  They made sure they were well taken care of and while in the field they didn’t take a day off from that responsibility.

They were faithful to their duties.

They were alone.  Most of the time they went for days without human contact – just them and their sheep.

Today’s world is so full of interruptions and constant activity – TV, social media, internet, cell phones, e-mails, work that demands our attention, we have to be doing something all the time just to live – and we seldom have any time for ourselves.

I wrote earlier of men that were placed, by themselves, on Vancouver Island in the late fall and most couldn’t handle the isolation.  The lack of contact with other humans played on their minds, without anything else to think about they allowed their imaginations to work against them – that was not the only reason they gave up before the last man, but a big part of it.

Alone, with one’s own thoughts.  It can be a difficult position to find ourselves in if we are not comfortable with who we are and particularly knowing our relationship with God.

What were the thoughts of these shepherds in the field? 

I would dare say that those that God used used their thoughts to often think and meditate on God’s Word and communicate with Him.

God knew their hearts.  While hither to they only had to watched over animals, God knew He could trust Him with His human flocks; He knew they would listen to Him (indeed knew HOW to listen to Him) and do as He told them to do.

The role of shepherd was so important that He used the terminology to describe the leaders of His people as shepherds – and held them accountable when they failed.

Ezekiel 34:2-3 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?

³ Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.

Today we say that the ministers are shepherds of God’s flock.  That is their responsibility.

Ministers, watch over the flock.  That is their main obligation.

But far too many Christians think that the minister is the one to lead the lost to the flock.  It is extremely difficult for him to do both and his first and greatest responsibility is to those God has entrusted them with.

While he can draw some in, few people come to God without first having contact with someone outside the church ‘building.’ 

Many haven’t even entered a church let alone go into one to seek solace – they try and find it elsewhere.

We are the only church most people see – particularly in this day and age.

We too, while being part of those sheep, also have the responsibility to help others in need and to lead others that have gone astray to the Shepherd and perhaps to the shepherd that can help them.

When Jesus said, in Mark 16:15 ^- And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

He didn’t say the eleven only, for the eleven of them to go into all the world would be impossible – they had to reach others, so others could reach and preach to others, so those others could preach and reach others – until He comes back.

We are the others.

Let us have the dedication shown by the shepherds in their fields at night to come to Christ and then tell others about Him.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again