Day 8 – The Shepherd Healer
“I’m in awe that the health and well-being of hundreds of animals is often left in the hands of a single person out in the wilderness.� (P.65)
A sheep is a very nervous creature, easily prone to trouble. It frightens easily. It is often scared of its own shadow! A sheep might get stuck in a briar patch, or fall into a creek while it’s trying to drink. It is notorious for following the herd, so if one sheep walks off a cliff, it’s quite possible the whole herd would follow suit. This may sound surprising to us, but this actually happened in Istanbul, Turkey in 2005. First, the scene began with just one sheep jumping off the cliff to die. The shepherds had left around 1500 sheep to graze and they relaxed while having their breakfasts.
In a few moments, they saw all the 1,500 sheep following the first one and jumping off the same cliff. This led to the death of about 500 sheep, altogether. Amazingly, the others survived as they jumped after the 500 sheep, and the fall had cushioned after the death of the earlier ones (Source - https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/500-s ... key-133225).
This is how fragile a sheep is. And that’s exactly why it is very important what sort of shepherd we are under. The sheep’s salvation is its shepherd, who is there to protect it from predators, to guide it to green and safe fields for grazing, to pull out the briars from the sheep’s wool, to feed and water. The sheep learn early on that the shepherd is for his sheep so the shepherd must be trusted.
We are so thankful that we can trust Jesus because He is our good shepherd. He guides us and protects us. He provides for us and watches out over us. He will never leave us nor forsake us. He does not even slumber! Thank You Jesus for being ‘the Shepherd Healer’.
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