Sheep Without a Shepherd

“He had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd." Mark 6:34

One of the first things we learn about God is that He loves us. I remember staring at a plaque on the wall when I was young. It had the words, "God is Love", and I remember feeling God say to me in my heart, "Yes I am." Imagine the Creator of the Universe, the one who breathed the gigantic enormous stars into being, taking the time to speak to a little girl in her small, ordinary little bedroom. He SEES us. He sees EACH ONE of us. Jesus saw the crowds, and had compassion on them. He FELT their pain. Jesus saw the leper, the blind man, the sick child, and He gave them what He could. I have to confess that I am an expert at NOT SEEING, at ignoring the need around me. It is easier if we do not see, then we do not need to act. But if we are to be like Jesus, we need to see. Seeing is where we need to start. God's heart breaks when He sees the crowd of humanity without a shepherd, so He sent His son to be the Good Shepherd, and to be our example of what the "image and likeness of God is". We are meant to "take on an entirely new way of life- a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces His character in you." (Eph.4:22 Msg)

For the new year, it's good to make all these resolutions to lose weight, to be more organized, to be more productive, etc etc, but let's include an intentional step by step plan to take on the character of Jesus. It's going to take a lifetime, but it will take us on a journey to our rightful place as sons and daughters of the King!