Sheep Thoughts, Part 4 By: Leslie Allen

By: Leslie Allen, Atherton Resident since 2014

Scripture:Psalm 23: 3

“He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

Questions for reflection and application:

• How and to whom is God revealing His character as He leads in the circumstances of your life?
• Is there an area, relationship, or attitude where you have wandered off the path God wants?

Thought for today:

Sheep are just like you and me. They often don’t want to be led, prodded, or guided in the right path. A good shepherd will do everything possible to encourage his sheep to follow paths that bring them to the best places of rest and restoration.  But they are prone to wander, and they don’t necessarily realize that trusting the leadership of the shepherd is the best way to find the deepest satisfaction. Sometimes, we wander too. God desires to lead us into choices, habits, and relationships that create righteousness in our lives so that we can deepen our fellowship with Him and others. But we don’t always listen to His leading.

Our minds have an uncanny knack of convincing us that we know the best way to go. Sometimes God has to use the hard places to guide us back onto the path that leads to joy. David reminds us that He does this for His own name’s sake. What kind of trust would a shepherd earn if everyone knew he was petulant, careless or irresponsible with his own sheep? It is the nature of sheep to disobey. Shepherds who have a good name do not lash out with rage, but correct with compassion when the sheep stray.

So too, we trust the honor, grace and character of God to earn for Himself a reputation of one who acts carefully and with just the right touch for those who re His. God’s name, His character is reflected in the way He is leading you today. He is showing the world through you that He is faithful to provide for all your needs and guide you in righteous paths. We can thank God for leading us graciously along life’s progressive journey and bringing us back when we stray into wrong paths. That’s the sort of Shepherd he is.