Sheep

The Bible has over 700 references about sheep. Amazing, isn't it? And surely, this is some great fodder to impress your friends at a party :) Seriously though, 700 references. Wow! God really likes to talk about sheep.

For some of us, it makes sense, we are like sheep, right? Jesus is the shepherd and we are sheep, following along his path for us. Often though, in our modern society, it is difficult for us to remember what it is really like to be sheep, because most of us have no idea what it really looks like to have sheep grazing in our backyard...at least I don't, well, not yet :) (What a great Christmas present to an unsuspecting friend :))

Well, I just began a new book by Margaret Feinberg. It is titled Scouting the Divine: my search for God in wine, wool and wild honey. It's a catchy title...one that really drew me in and the cover is all catchy and everything, so I think I look pretty cool when I carry it around with me. Even better, there is actually good stuff in the book, so that even makes it doubly better to carry around:).

While I am still within the first 50 pages of this book, I had to reflect for a moment about what she is talking about. In her book, Margaret heads out to meet with a shepherdess in Oregon, to learn about Sheep. For a few days, she stays with this women, learning all about sheep and how they really act. This book is filled with great references for scripture to really help us understand what is going on, in some of those 700 passages, but one such passage really stuck out to me.

Margaret goes out with the shepherdess, Lynne, to meet her sheep. As they go out, Lynne goes through the barn to get to the pasture, and then she calls out three words, "Sheep, Sheep, Sheep." Before Margaret knows it, all of the sheep stop whatever they are doing, and flock towards Lynne. There was no hesitation, no indeciveness, nothing. They just stop and follow.

Later on, Margaret tries this as well, to call those three words allowed to the flock while they are grazing. Nothing. Simply Nothing. No movement, no glance, nothing.

The sheep know Lynne's voice, they follow her, and her alone. They are dependent on only her. This the voice they listen to.

The sciptures connect God to that voice of the Shepherd, to call us(sheep), to him.

In a world filled with many voices, many ideas, many perspectives, I guess the question we must ask ourselves is, whose voice do we really listen to? What voice will make us stop in our tracks and follow? And maybe, do I need to learn how to "baaa" better??

Grace and Peace!

Micah