Sheep Need A Shepherd

My husband is a shepherd. When I say that I don’t mean he is a man that raises sheep. I mean he is a shepherd at heart. There is a big difference in being a shepherd and someone who raises sheep.

The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. John 10:12 NIV 

Keith can look at a lamb and know if it’s not feeling well. He watches them and studies them. He knows if it’s ear looks a little droopy or if it’s walking with a slight limp. He watches to see if they are eating as they should. He can look at a ewe and know that she’ll be lambing very soon just by the way she’s acting. He takes time to just stand and watch them so he knows what’s going on with each and every one of them. He can easily tell them apart and can tell you which ewe goes with each lamb. Keith knows how many sheep are supposed to be in each pasture, he counts them daily and if one is missing he searches high and low until it’s found. He truly has a shepherd’s heart. 

Sheep are not very smart, they get themselves in all kinds of trouble. They will get their heads caught because the 10 acres of grass they have isn’t good enough and they have to try to get the little patch through the fence that looks a tad bit greener. Sheep will eat the wrong things that cause them to get sick and they will overeat and literally kill themselves if you’re not watchful. They have to be vaccinated and dewormed. Sheep need their hooves trimmed and their wool sheared to keep them healthy. Sheep need a shepherd to watch over and to take care of them.

The Bible refers to the church as sheep. We the church are the sheep. 

Now we know Jesus is the Chief Shepherd. He’s the head of it all. He says “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” (John 10:14) A good shepherd will actually put himself in harm’s way to save his sheep. We see this in scripture when David kills the lion and the bear while watching his father’s flock.

We have men of God that will watch over our souls as a shepherd. 
And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. Jeremiah 3:15 KJV Another translation says Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. NIV Notice the interchanged word there Pastors and Shepherds. I believe my Pastor to be one of the most important people in my life. He’s watching over me, feeding me the Word and guiding me through this world. 

I put a lot of confidence in my Pastor and what he teaches and I pay attention when he talks to me. I was 17 years old when I felt like the Lord brought me to the man I was going to marry. I was head over heels in love and believed this to be the will of God. We had a few obstacles in the way, one he was 34 years old (17 years older than me and twice my age at the time). And my mom and dad hadn’t been going to church and they spoke out against this grown man coming after their 17 year old daughter. I was really confused, I had never rebelled against my parents before but I truly felt this is what God had for me and I was in love! My Pastor at the time had a meeting with me and Keith. I had grown up in this church and he had been my Pastor since I was 9 years old and I wasn’t sure how he was going to see this. But I had prayed “God if this is your will for me then let my church accept this.” Well, long story short, my Pastor gave us his blessing, he knew Keith and felt like we would be good together.

It was such a relief because I had already determined that if my Pastor would have said “Angie, this is not God’s will for you and you need to stop this now.” As hard as it would have been, I would have walked away from that relationship and Keith says he would have done the same. We have that much confidence in the man of God. Not that he is perfect but I know he’s the one that God has put in my life to be my shepherd. Keith and I recently celebrated our 30th anniversary and have raised three boys and still attend the same church. God has been good to us!

I have only had two different pastors in my life. But I trust them with not only my soul but I trust them with my children’s souls. They are the watchmen. I may not agree with everything they say but that’s not the point. My job is to submit to them.

Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you. Hebrews 13:17 KJV

See, I need to submit and obey what they tell me. If I don’t agree with what they say then I need to take it to the Chief Shepherd in prayer. Not to other sheep. Don’t run the pastor or his family down, instead lift them up in prayer. I have found the more that I pray for my pastor, the more I seem to agree with him. It’s kind of interesting how that works. If the shepherd leads me wrong then God will deal with him, but if I’m disobeying the shepherd then I’m the one in trouble. 

I have always tried to make my Pastor’s job easy. I know he has a heavy load and I sure don’t want to make it heavier or harder than it needs to be. I know he’s human and he’s going to have off days and that’s fine. I have been blessed to have an amazing Pastor and family in my life. I want to live in a way that when he gives an account for me, he can do it with great joy. So I’m praising the Lord for the shepherd that He has put over me and I’m gonna do my best to be his prized sheep.