April 25, 2021
Scripture Psalm 23
1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
3 he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.
A mother was concerned about her kindergarten son walking to school. The boy didn’t want his mother to walk with him. Now she wanted to give him the feeling that he had some independence, yet also know that he was safe. So she had an idea of how to handle it. She asked a neighbor if she would please follow her son to school in the mornings, staying at a distance, so he probably wouldn’t notice her. The neighbor said yes, since she was up early with her toddler anyway, it would be a good way for them to get some exercise as well. The next school day, the neighbor and her little girl set out following behind Timmy as he walked to school with a friend. The neighbor followed the children to school for the whole week. As the two walked and chatted, kicking stones and twigs, Timmy’s little friend noticed the same lady was following them as she seemed to do every day all week. Finally she said to Timmy, “Have you noticed that lady following us to school? Do you know her?” Timmy replied, “Yeah, I know who she is.” The girl said, “Well, who is she?” “That’s just Shirley Goodnest,” Timmy replied, “and her daughter Marcy.” “Shirley Goodnest? Who the heck is she and why is she following us?” “Well,” Timmy explained, “every night my Mom makes me say the 23rd Psalm with my prayers, cuz she worries about me so much.” And in the Psalm, it says, “Shirley Goodnest and Marcy shall follow me all the days of my life, so I guess I’ll just have to get used to it!”
I received this story in an email and seeing how we are looking at the 23rd Psalm and the Good Shepherd I just needed to share it with you. In the story the neighbor was nice enough to follow the two children to keep them safe, to give the Mom reassurance. But I think we follow things, all the time too. We follow weather forecasts, we follow fashion trends, we follow the news and stock market. We follow sports teams. I bet there are at least a handful here, who follow the weekly drama on The Voice or Dancing with the Stars. We follow lots of things. If we are honest sometimes we follow our neighbors and friends trying to keep up with the latest home decorations, or the most popular car, or how about the trend to constantly need a new cell phone, ( got mine this week, but jumped from a 6s to a twelve). Not long ago I heard a story about a trendy Thai restaurant in Los Angeles that served posh and delicious ethnic food. There was always a wait to be served, it was the IN place to be. The catch to the story is that this restaurant was mobile- a high end food truck. But this traveling restaurant would be in a different location each night. And we might think how in the world does it stay in business? The owners would park the van outside a club, and then get the word out through Twitter, connecting everyone through their phones and text messages. So the word electronically goes out the Thai restaurant is at the corner of South and Main and instantly the people come. Business is so good that they are expending and working on two new mobile eateries. This works because people are willing to follow; willing to go to a new place, willing to step out of their comfort zones.
Who do you follow? If you looked at how you spend your time and your energy and your money, who or what do you follow?
Today our Scripture readings speak of Shepherds; both the Lord as my shepherd and Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Sheep and shepherds were a common image and one everyone in Jesus’ day understood and appreciated, but those images are less meaningful to us today. I doubt that any of us grew up herding sheep. I was fascinated to discover an interesting thing about sheep, especially as opposed to say cattle. Cattle you can herd from behind, you can prod them and move them by making noises, or the cowboys rounding them up to get them to go where you want. Sheep on the other hand prefer to be led. Sheep will not go anywhere that someone else – say their trusted shepherd – does not go first. Sheep follow their shepherd. Sheep will go where there shepherd goes. Sheep follow their shepherd, because the shepherd keeps them safe, and they know the shepherd’s voice. One commentator wrote, “Sheep seem to consider their shepherds part of the family, and the relationship that grows between the two is quite exclusive. They develop a language of their own that outsiders are not privy too.”
We are not sheep, even though we too do go astray, but we have a wonderful relationship, a bond, a language all our own with the Good Shepherd. Jesus said, “I know my own and my own know me.” Later in John, Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice, I know them and they follow me. When we hear Jesus’ voice through prayer and meditation we open ourselves up to be changed, to be led, to follow. Sometimes that is risky. But we do not have to venture anywhere without the assurance that Jesus the Good Shepherd is just ahead leading the way, creating a path for us to follow.
Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Unlike other shepherds or hired hands, Jesus will not run away when trouble comes. Even if we walk through the darkest valley, our shepherd is with us. Jesus will stand watch over the flock and protect us and keep us safe. And if one of the sheep goes astray, as we all sometimes do, Jesus will work to find you and gently bring you back into the fold. There is one flock and one shepherd. But is it Jesus’ willingness to protect the flock, to love the flock above his own life that makes him good, makes him unique, makes him our Savior. For Christ laid down his life, and then took it up again so that we would know God’s love and live eternally; living life more abundantly.
*How do we follow the Good Shepherd? One way is to love. I John states; God is love and urges us “to love, not in word and speech, but in truth and action”. To love in truth is to follow God’s Word and to apply it to your life, to follow where God leads. “The Lord is my shepherd, he leads me”. The question is: Are we willing to follow? Are we willing to explore new pastures knowing that our shepherd will go before us, and lead the way? (Are we willing to take on a new mission knowing that God is calling us to serve?) To love in action means we abide in God’s love and take up the challenge to serve- putting our faith into action.
To love and to follow in truth and in action is not a casual thing, like following a trend, but rather a consuming following that leads us deeper into our faith and further into action. (Get involved in the missions- the shower ministry, or sponsoring a prayer child in El Salvador or participating in the upcoming Mission Event on Zoom following church on May 15. Listen to the Good Shepherd’s voice and see where he is leading you.
Soon we will all be doing new things after a year in isolation from Covid. Maybe you have already started. We will hug our family, we will be inside with friends, when we feel ready. We will become willing to fly on airplanes and travel the world. As we each take steps forward into what feels like new territory, remember that Jesus the Good Shepherd is right there in front of you. You still need to use common sense about when and where to venture out, but take comfort in your Good Shepherd walking that path with you.
Listen to the Shepherd’s voice calling you to love in truth and action.
Follow the Good shepherd into new activities.
May Shirley Goodnest and Marcy be with you today and always. Amen.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious unto you;
the Lord lift His countenance upon you and give you peace.
