Based on Luke 15:4-7

MEMORY TEXT:  “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24).

Being a shepherd is not an easy job.  It may look as though the shepherd is doing nothing, but a good shepherd must know how sheep behave and what their instincts are in order to lead them successfully.  Here are some of the challenges a shepherd must face:

Sheep spend their days eating grass.  Hour after hour they eat without looking up.  Therefore they may not notice that the rest of the flock has moved on out of sight.  Soon they're lost, wandering around in a daze, bleating but still grazing.

They need to be found quickly.  Sheep can’t digest all their grazing until they lie down.  But sheep don’t have sense enough to lie down, even when their stomach is swollen and hurting.  The shepherd has to make them lie down for their own good.

Sheep are followers by nature.  Sheep life is one long game of follow-the-leader.  If the lead sheep wanders to the edge of a cliff, the whole flock will follow.

Sheep are helpless against predators.  If a wolf gets in the sheep pen, sheep don’t fight back.  They don’t try to get away.  They don’t spread out.  All they do is huddle together.

If sheep fall into moving water, they drown.  Their heavy coats absorb water quickly, and sheep can't swim.  All in all, sheep are quite helpless.  It’s no wonder the Bible says that we are like sheep, especially when we are lost.  

Here are some words of comfort for you to think about today: “Desponding soul, take courage, even though you have done wickedly.  Do not think that perhaps God will pardon your transgressions, and permit you to come into His presence.  God has made the first advance.  While you were in rebellion against Him, He went forth to seek you.  With the tender heart of the shepherd He left the ninety and nine, and went out into the wilderness to find that which was lost.  The soul, bruised and wounded, and ready to perish, He encircles in His arms of love, and joyfully bears it to the fold of safety” (Signs of the Times, December 16, 2024).