Stories of Jesus…Part of the Crowd
I’m just trying to picture swarms of people coming from as far away as 40ish miles. That’s about 3 days of walking depending on strength, endurance, weather, and stops. I bet while they’re walking, thoughts jostle and wrestle around in their heads. Hopes. Desperate measures. Speculations. Nervous excitement. What ifs?
Secure All My Days
Sadie raced past us, her Ridgeback hair standing on end all the way down her back. This was a once-in-a-lifetime chase for our dog. She took after the doe at full speed. We groaned, then began calling her to stop, to come back. But we knew it was useless. Sadie would have to wear herself out before she would quit. Our only hope was that she wouldn’t get kicked before the chase ended.
Secure in Love’s Hospitality
Psalm 23 appears to shift at this point from a shepherding metaphor to a host providing for his guest. If that’s so, it hints at a precious truth not fully understood until Jesus came. God treats us not only as His sheep but as His friends. “I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from my Father” (John 15:15 NET).
Secure in the Dark
A church friend of ours built a vacation home on a lovely lake in Maine. It’s a spectacular house designed to host friends and family. What struck me during our stay last summer was the tall window over the bed in our room. Once the sun set, the moon, stars, silvery water and silhouetted trees created a magical, twinkling display inside that window frame.
Secure in God’s Leading
Some people are news junkies. They can tell you at any moment all that’s happening in the world and what they think about it. Though I love how technology connects me to faraway loved ones, I hate how that same technology dumps a world of need at my doorstep every day. Those troubles are piled on top of the concerns already part of my immediate circle. It can feel overwhelming.
Secure Through Restoration
Once a sheep loses its balance and rolls onto its back, a “cast” sheep will lay with its feet flailing in the air, unable to stand up on its own. The weight and shape of a sheep’s body prevents it from being able to regain its footing. The image is funny, but the condition isn’t. Within minutes, blood flow to limbs is cut off as gases build up in a chamber of the sheep’s stomach. Without a shepherd’s intervening care, a cast sheep will die.
