Every! Sheep! Matters!

FACT: 

God is fervently, ardently calling His Holy Oddballs to step up and be selfless shepherds--shepherdesses, too. 

Good shepherds that follow in the footsteps of the Savior.

Apprentices to the Chief Shepherd, learning His ways day in and day out.

Peter puts it like this:

Here's my concern: that you care for God's flock with all the diligence of a shepherd. Not because you have to, but because you want to please God. Not calculating what you can get out of it, but acting spontaneously. Not bossily telling others what to do, but tenderly showing them the way (1 Peter 5:2-3, The Message)...

The ESV uses a stronger word - I exhort you...

Exhort.

It's not casual; it's urgent. 

It's the Apostle Peter, passionately admonishing us as Jesus-followers.

It's Peter, on his knees, pleading. 

He's beseeching us to shepherd whatever flock He has assigned to us in the midst of the world in which we are placed - 

Showing them the way...

Leading them to the safest place where they can rest...

THE SAFEST PLACE FOR A SHEEP IS NOT BESIDE THE SHEPHERD, BUT NEAR HIS HEART, BETWEEN HIS SHOULDERS.

I feel the heaviness of Peter's heart.

He's seen sheep wander. 

He knows the danger.  

He's carrying a weight for sheep being led astray by false teachers (2 Peter 2), the "wolves" sneaking in among the flock (Acts 20).

And, there's Jesus' own parable in Matthew 18:12-14...

What do you think? If any man has one hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go search for the one that is straying? And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray...

Shamefully, I say, I don't know my response...

Probably, I'd shrug my shoulders and hope for the best for that sheep-gone-missing...I still have 99 left.

Not a GOOD SHEPHERD - that's not his heart.

EVERY SHEEP MATTERS.

Say it slowly -- Every! Sheep! Matters!

There's a story that sticks in my mind from the book While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks, by Timothy Laniak. 

A shepherdess lost her favorite ewe.

She dropped everything.

For two months, she searched. She asked every passing shepherd. She wept. She prayed. She refused to give up.

Then one day, as another flock passed through her village, a single sheep lifted its head at the sound of her voice.

Her ewe!

The lost heard and responded.

She shrieked. She rejoiced; and, the village rejoiced with her. All for ONE EWE!

Two questions come to mind as I close.

What sheep in my world have gone missing? 

Will I go in search? 

 

Last week's blog post? That was more about shepherds who will disciple - - teaching, reminding.

This week's lesson? It's about pursuit. 

About diligence.

About refusing to let the wandering stay missing.

Oh, and Peter hints that there might even be a heavenly crown waiting (verse 5) - but, what will that matter ? Because, the lost has come back to the Shepherd. The wanderer has come home.

God's Pointing At You...

Back in 1917, the US Army created an iconic poster meant to instill patriotism and enhance recruitment as we ventured into the war-to-end-all-wars (World War I). 

Even though the war officially began in Europe on June 28, 1914, the US didn't enter the war until April 6 of 1917. 

A artist by the name of James Montgomery Flagg borrowed a design from Britain, used his own face (to save on hiring a model), and offered the image, first to a national magazine in 1916 asking the question, "What Are You Doing For Preparedness?" 

(Just FYI, I was NOT born yet; I did research the history published for the World War I Museum and History.)

This famous morale booster showed a caricature of a very serious "Uncle Sam" (have we forgotten him in our history?) pointing his finger to create the illusion of a direct, personal call to duty, saying:

I WANT YOU!

No question, Uncle Sam appeared quite grave...war's intensity shares no frivolity. 

I know this from my own son; he understood this well when he vowed to defend the constitution.

So, as Peter closes out his letter enlisting his aliens and strangers to receive their calling as "holy oddballs" (social misfits), I get the feeling that the Lord is saying the same thing to His people (especially us "olders"). 

I WANT YOU!

For what?

As Shepherds/Shepherdesses.

It's serious business. 

The sheep wander off.

They are as stubborn and stiff-necked as the flock Moses tried leading out of Egypt into the Promised Land.

They get themselves in trouble, come home wounded, and battle-scarred. 

They need constant care, good pasture, still waters, protection from the wolves threatening to carry them off (2 Peter 2). 

They need rescuers to carry them home.

Most of all, they are a forgetful flock. 

As I've recently been reading through Moses' interaction with his group of exiles (DEFINITELY, HOLY ODDBALLS), I took note of the amount of time Moses spent on REMINDERS. 

He continues repeating God's Words (His faithfulness, His compassion, His awesome works, His commandments, His moral code, His Levitical law) over and over and over and over...**

I wonder why until I remember what an amnesia-ridden-group-we-are. 

GOD'S PEOPLE SUFFER FROM AMNESIA.

Hence, the Lord WANTS SHEPHERDS to speak these things He wants them to remember, to write them down, to share them often in the comings and the goings.

He needs us to never forget to rehearse His faithfulness to the generations who come after us...

to tell our stories of the times He has intersected Himself into our lives...

to present the stories that bring hope...

to speak the words that He has used to transform our hearts...

and, maybe more than anything to bring to mind His unfailing Promises...

After all, 

...not one of God's good promises fail; they all come to pass (Joshua 21:45)!

God wants shepherds/shepherdesses in His spiritual army!

It's serious business.

Holy oddballs are somewhat desperate for them. 

AND...It's a finger-pointing, direct, personal call to all of us who are older, wiser, and who've walked around the burning bush a time or two...

**Various sources tell me that the words remember and do not forget, appear between 148-200 times in the Scriptures (121 times in the Old Testament, 27 in the New). I'd say this is an important mandate. Again, the Lord needs help reminding His people...of EVERYTHING!

From Surprised to Soul-Settled

Last week I promised we'd look into the Apostle Peter's personal theology of suffering. 

Before I bullet point his thoughts, I want to add a P.S. to last week.

It's only natural to feel surprise at the arrival of any unexpected event in our lives...

For goodness sake, only a Dr. Spock (if you're a Trekkie fan) calmly and unemotionally reacts.

So, Peter's not trying to send us on a guilt-trip for expressing a little knee-jerk-shock before we've had time to process. 

Nope.

Peter wants us to put tools in our pockets so that we've already processed when the time comes, and the lapse between the astonishment and the reigning of peace in our hearts grows shorter with the onset of each trial. 

Peter was no stranger to suffering. He desired his teachings to settle hearts even amidst exile-living, AND reduce that element of surprise. Instead of reacting negatively, we have time to catch our breath and respond positively. 

During our stint serving  in Africa at a school for missionary's children, if I'd studied and taken ownership of even just Peter's words (not to mention the whole counsel of God's words), I'd have spared my heart a lot of turmoil when difficulty landed on my doorstep.

Instead, it took me weeks and weeks of a troubled spirit, disquieted within me, to finally discover this truth. With God's help, a timely message placed strategically in my mailbox on a cassette tape (smile), and the soothing words of Scripture, I ultimately arrived at that place of a quieted soul.

Hear what Peter wants to remind us...

SUFFERINGS ARE MOMENTARY

In the midst of the hardship, time drags. Yet, in light of eternity to come, what we experience is the blink of an eye. So, my focus needs to transfer on the there and then, not the here and now. Do I allow the burdens of today to put me on a merry-go-round of a troubled mind, or am I resting in the fact that Jesus has a plan even in this? And, in light of our heavenly hope, this is just a "little while."

TRIALS REFINE US.

While trials feel fiery they will reveal to us the genuineness of our faith (down through the ages, the "gold" of our faith is always purified by fire). What might the Lord be doing in me right now that will ultimately bring Him glory? Thank Him!

GOD'S FAVOR WILL BE POURED OUT ON US IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MESS

All trials come in various shapes and sizes (various - the word means variegated, as in different shades); but, good news (!) God's grace is described with the same word (1 Peter 4:10, God's varied grace). For every shade of trial there is a grace from God to help us endure what we are experiencing. Where can I see God's grace in the midst of today's difficulties? Give Him praise! 

TRIALS HELP US KNOW OUR SAVIOR MORE INTIMATELY

In the midst of our hard times, as we seek the Lord and His word, we get to share in the fellowship of His suffering.  The Apostle Paul tells us that through this sharing we will know Jesus even more and live even closer to His heart, knowing His thoughts, and experiencing His deep love for us - (Philippians 3:10). What might God be teaching me in the midst of my trials - about His character, His relationship with me, His word, His watchcare over me... Respond with gratitude...

JESUS SUFFERED FOR ME...with so great a salvation, how can I not receive suffering as a gift if He asks it of me?

Peter (and even Jesus) said that if one's teacher suffers, won't His students also experience the same (Matthew 10:24-32)? No student is better than the master! How can this lead to appreciating His suffering on our behalf even more? 

TRIALS DON'T MEAN WE'VE DONE SOMETHING WRONG; so, there is no need to live in shame.

Simply because we are suffering doesn't mean we've sinned. This has been a typical belief down through the ages. BUT, remember the story of the man born blind? Jesus was asked, "Who sinned, the baby in the womb or the parents?" Oh my! He responded - "Neither!" And, remember dear Job and his three tiresome friends? The trials Job endured are a testimony of his right living, not wrong actions. 

NOW THEN...SIDE NOTE: we should always check our hearts...is there something we need to confess? We often suffer consequences for our actions. Paul warns us that we will "reap what we sow." Sin does have consequences. 

Have I examined my heart? Have I repented of any sin that might lead to difficult consequences? Or, are these trials I'm experiencing for another reason? A refinement? A new lesson? A testimony of God's goodness to the lost around me? An opportunity to show the world that loving Jesus and living for Him looks different on us than the rest of the world? A way to know Him better? 

ULTIMATELY, OUR SUFFERINGS LEAD TO REJOICING.

Over and again as Peter discusses the trials of life, he clearly expresses that our outlook should be one of rejoicing. Why? Because God, the Father, the King of Kings, the Good Shepherd, the Almighty, Creator of the Universe is watching over us. 

Tuck these truths in your pocket. Pull them out in difficult times and let them work God's peace right into your heart. 

SURPRISE!

Surprise! 

What rises in you when you hear that word?

Do you love surprises?

Or do you prefer predictability—knowing what’s coming and when?

A little internet research informed me that most people like to be surprised. 

(I was, actually, surprised by this). 

Those who don't have a need for PREDICTABILITY...and, surprise always falls into the category of uncertainty. 

I’m a bit neutral. Most of my surprise-experiences have been good ones.

But it’s the hard surprises—the ones that arrive uninvited and unwelcome—that tend to shake me (and probably you, as well):  the loss of a loved one, a difficult diagnosis, a fractured relationship…
even the smaller disruptions—delays, cancellations, misplaced luggage.

Those are the ones that throw us.

And yet…surprises are part of life.

If we’ve embraced our identity as holy oddballs—elect exiles, sojourners, pilgrims—Peter tells us there is one “surprise” we should actually expect.

SUFFERING! 

In fact, Peter goes so far as to say DIFFICULTY shouldn’t surprise us at all.

“Do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you…as though something strange were happening to you.” (1 Peter 4:12)

Peter is helping us redefine what is normal.

Trials are not interruptions to our lives.
They are part of the pathway of our faith.

“…though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith…may be found to result in praise and glory and honor…” (1 Peter 1:6–7)

During the years I studied to obtain my degree in counseling, one of my professors encouraged all of his students to develop a theology of suffering. 

In fact, the final for that class wasn't an exam, but basically a dissertation on the subject.

That exercise revealed, with clarity, how little I understood what the Scriptures tell me about dealing with this topic. 

Peter knew we'd need our own theology; a firm foundation to stand on when we have to face the trials of life.

He starts with two simple truths intended to shift our understanding of "normal" and help us to steady our souls.

His goal for us is to move more rapidly from  SURPRISE to SOUL-SETTLED when suffering lands in our laps.

First—tribulation is normal.
There is nothing unusual happening when hardship comes.
It is not personal. It is not proof that something has gone wrong.
It is part of living in a broken world.

Maybe… it’s just our turn.

Second—the Lord is present.
We do not suffer alone.
And if He is with us, He is not passive—He is purposeful.

He is refining.
He is strengthening.
He is preparing something in us that will one day result in glory.

Again, Peter’s goal is not to explain away suffering—but to prepare us for it.

So that we can move, more quickly,
from surprise…to a settled soul.

And, I believe he's inviting each of us to develop our own Biblical understanding of suffering... (praise the Lord, he won't be giving us a grade!). 

In Peter's experience, he knows we're going to need it...and he wants his listener's to be ready.

So, let's add this exercise to the top of our to-do-lists (even I need a refresher on my theology of suffering)...and more of Peter's advice next week.

Holy Oddballs One-Another (and a look at Easter)

Just around the corner (this Sunday), we will celebrate Easter. 

Sometimes, it's easy to get lost in the doings and the trappings, rather than reflecting and celebrating the reason of the season (just like at Christmas time).  Hence, the reason, I attempt to set aside Lent as a season to "journey to the cross" and sit in its shadow...

"Easter" (as my young grandson once informed me) is a 'BIG DEAL!'"

Indeed!

It's so much more than bunnies and baskets; Easter reminds us that once we: 

...were dead in our trespasses and sins, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air...the passions of our flesh...and were by nature children of wrath (Ephesians 2:1-3)

...were the uncircumcised and strangers to the covenant of promise, having no hope and without God in the world... (Ephesians 2:11)

...were far off, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel...(Ephesians 2:12)

...lived behind a dividing wall of hostility...(Ephesians 2:14)

 

BUT GOD...

...being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, made us alive together in Christ, brought us near by His blood, tore down that dividing wall, grew us into a holy temple, fellow members of the household of God, and filled our hearts with PEACE, HOPE, JOY... (Ephesians 2:4-22)

How can we not rejoice the way the Apostle Peter encourages (Greek word - agalliaō; a combination of words meaning much joy; to jump for joy, exult, be exceedingly glad)?!?!

Easter spotlights for us the one-anothering of Jesus, especially His "work" on earth as submitted servant (see last week's blog).

Jesus...who, though, He was in the form of God did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a servant....and, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient (this Greek word can also be translated as submissive) to the point of death...on a cross 

(Philippians 2:6-8). 

Jesus...who for the JOY set before Him (Hebrews 12:2b)...willingly gave up His will to the will of the Father (Luke 22:42) that He might die once for all sinners (Romans 6:10) that we might live to eternal life. 

So, when Peter says, "put on Jesus (again, this is my translation of Peter's instructions to the holy oddballs to whom he is writing his letter)" - keeping Easter at the forefront of our brains - the first response that comes to mind is - - - - Now,

Go and do likewise:

ONE-ANOTHER one another, just as Jesus did, faithfully submitted to the Father with a heart to serve. 

While We're Here...We Work

When I turned sixteen, I secured a real job (even though I babysat for years before) at JC Penney’s department store in their sewing section (that dates me!). 

Since I loved to sew and, by then, had been making my own school clothes for a couple years, I was thrilled! 

Weekdays I spent finishing high school classes, while weekends were dedicated to Mr. Penney among fabrics, notions, and patterns. Mmmmmm….I can still smell that department-store-air; and, the happy chattering-sound of shoppers remains safely stored in my memory. 

Of course, I had a dress code that held to modesty and professionalism.

So, each weekend, I enthusiastically “dressed for work.” 

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I’ve spent a lot of time on the fact that if we’re going to live in this world as social misfits, holy oddballs, peculiar pilgrims, we must dress for work.

Each day we get up and “put on Jesus,” then get after the mission and ministry of the Kingdom.

Ah, but, what does our work look like? 

Well, the Apostle Peter spells that out for us and covers every aspect of life.

He discusses our role within the church; the government under which we live; as workers under a boss; as wives and husbands; closing with “and all the rest of you…”

Peter’s pretty straight forward: 

Be subject to one-another and serve one-another.

In other words, Peter tells us our main job is to one-another one-another as we work for the Kingdom. 

After all, the goal is to bring others along with us to our heavenly home and one-anothering is the best way to do so. 

As exiles we are to make exiles (OK…disciples, we’re to make disciples). 

There are a lot of one-another-instructions in the Scriptures, but Peter's letter encompasses just two.

1. Be Subject to One-Another

Here’s what Strong’s Dictionary says about this Greek word, hupotasso:

A Greek military term meaning "to arrange in a military fashion under the command of a leader.” In non-military use, it was "a voluntary and willing attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden.”

It’s about honoring those in positions of leadership (giving due respect to the position, if not the person), showing love, having a tender heart, and a humble mind-set. In this, we fear God. 

Bottom line: eagerly get in line to do the work which the Lord has assigned you to do. 

2. Serve One-Another

Again, Strong’s Dictionary for the Greek word, diakonos: to be an attendant; one who waits on another; one who executes the commands of another. 

A "diakonos" performs his/her duties with a willing attitude of joy and acceptance. 

Just an observation - I don’t think we much like these two word-sets. 

In this day and age, they rub us the wrong way, because we fear being taken advantage of. We fear the abuse. 

I understand. There seems to be a lot of abuse to those who one-another in these ways.

However, Peter, influenced by the Holy Spirit, would tell us by way or reminder:

Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God (1 Peter 2:12)…

Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God (1 Peter 2:16).

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps (1 Peter 2:21).

Work as Jesus worked; serve as Jesus served; submit as He did….even unto death. 

So, this is our work (according to Peter): 

MAKE A PREDETERMINED CHOICE TO WILLINGLY GET IN LINE TO SERVE OTHERS.

And, I have to ask myself is this my mindset each morning after I "get dressed for work?" 

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For a complete list of "one another's a .pdf has been attached if you will click on this link.