This morning I was reading from John 10. Here Jesus speaks of his love for "the sheep." He talks about himself as the good shepherd of the sheep. As such, he does not flee when threats come (like wolves) nor does he abandon when the sheep stray or become lost. When the sheep are injured or diseased he attends to them and helps them back to health.
It is a matter of perspective, whether we can see these acts as expressions of the shepherd's love for us. Sometimes we are so injured that the attempts of the caregiver seem trite. Sometimes we are so hungry that the morsel of bread seems unable to satisfy. The good shepherd even understands our inability to perceive his presence and his work.
I would never try to argue with someone who is so hungry or so injured or so lost that they must see the attempts of the Shepherd to aid them. That would be like ignoring their wound. All I can do is speak of how I have experienced, even at the darkest of times, the pursuit of the Shepherd.
This is what I offer to you this morning. If you are able to see, in your own life, the ways in which the Good Shepherd is caring for you - speak of these things. Bear witness to them. You are never aware of how your speaking of such will aid your fellow travelers.
If you are unable to see the presence of a loving and caring God, hear my words. Not as some condemnation of the place you are along the path but as an affirmation that over and over the presence of God has made itself known and felt. If you have the inclination, cling to the hope that the treatment of your injuries will gain ground as the days pass.
"(The shepherd) calls his own sheep by name and leads them out."
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