27 The Wayward Sheep
Moe has been a shepherd for years. One day when he woke up from a nap as the sheep were grazing in the pasture, he knew something was wrong. He quickly counted the sheep in his flock and realized one sheep was missing. He quickly scanned the surroundings and saw that one sheep had gone astray from the rest of the flock and was wandering towards a cliff. Moe knew that if he did not act quickly the sheep was going to plummet off the cliff.
Leaving his flock in the pasture, Moe grabbed his staff and rod and ran as fast he could to the wayward sheep. Moe whistled and called to the sheep to get its attention, but it kept wandering towards the cliff. Moe finally caught up to the sheep, but it ignored him and kept going towards the cliff. Moe gently used his staff to redirect the sheep back on the path towards the pasture. However, the sheep stubbornly kept its course. Moe kept prodding the sheep, but it would not stop.
The sheep got dangerously close to the cliff and Moe knew he had to stop the sheep now or it would die. Moe took his club, steadied himself, and hit the sheep hard in the leg with his rod. Sheep fell down a few feet from the cliff's edge, bleating in pain, but it did not continue moving towards the cliff. It tore at Moe to hurt the sheep, but he knew he had no other choice. The sheep might not be able to walk on its own for a while, but Moe had saved its life. Moe put the sheep around his shoulders and carried the sheep home.
Sometimes God has to use drastic measures to get our attention. There are times where we may be suffering in pain and we wonder why God has allowed misfortune to come to us. C.S. Lewis once said that "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to a deaf world." Remember that God loves us and wants us to turn away from our sinful ways and focus on His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus said in the book of Revelation, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent."
- Recommended reading: Psalm 23:1-6
