Shepherd

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11).

The Good Shepherd form the Catacombs of Priscilla

I spend so much of my life as a mother listening to my children telling me that they do not need to listen to me or do as I ask them to do.

Often, I am lost for words – or rather, I am tired of repeating the same old justifications for listening to my advice…  After all, there are only so many times that a person can say that they are acting in someone’s best interest or that someone has more experience in this matter than others and therefore should be trusted in deference to their age and wisdom…

And I have been reflecting on this today.  You see, Christ told us that He is the Good Shepherd.  It is Christ who leads His sheep.  And in leading those sheep – me (and you too) Christ is able to direct us to where we need to be.  And the sheep do not question the shepherd.  They do not argue about the journey or the destination.  They do not debate the route or complain that perhaps they have been misunderstood.  They follow blindly and focus only on the grass beneath their noses.

And I have been thinking about this today, because Christ did not call me a sheep to insult me – He called me a sheep to direct me and protect me…

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the 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. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.  I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.  I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.  The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again.  No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” (John 10:11-18).

You see, where the sheep follow the shepherd, they are safe.  But where they are distracted or try to go on their own path, they become lost and exposed to their predators…

And as I reflect on the arguments of my children and the silliness of trying to prove that my intentions for them are good, I am quite overcome by the perfect patience of the Blessed Father, because without that perfect patience, He would have destroyed the world for my disobedience.  But instead, like a good shepherd, He simply rounds me up so that I stay safe with Him – even despite my foolish disobedience.

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.