----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Rob Smith <toanosmith@yahoo.com>
To: Rob Smith <rsmith@mycwa.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2017 7:26 AM
Subject: the shepherd and the sheep
Psalm 23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
According to Phillip Keller, who wrote "A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23", sheep are very reluctant to lie down. He said that four requirements must be met before they will lie down:1) They are very timid and must be free of all fear first.2) They must not feel intimidated by sheep around them.3) They must be free of torment from flies or parasites.4) They will not lie down unless totally free of hunger.-I spotted sheep in Colonial Williamsburg Friday evening. They were all 'standing up' and busy eating the grass at their feet. Some of the sheep, like the one pictured, were sorely in need of shearing. They were the picture of harmlessness, and I suppose, vulnerability. As we consider how "The Lord is our shepherd" we realize that we, also, are vulnerable. And like the sheep that Phillip Keller described we cannot find complete contentment unless we are free from fear, intimidation, torment or hunger. In both a natural, survival, sense and a spiritual...heart-peace sense we need a Shepherd's assistance. Keller discussed how, as a shepherd, his very presence would bring calm, settle disputes and reassure the sheep of protection and provision.-Ezekiel repeats the picture of God as our shepherd in chapter 34. Here is a passage that restates the thoughts we've just discussed:-Ezekiel 34:15 "I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice."-May the Lord be your shepherd and may you find peace and comfort to also lie down,Rob Smith
According to Phillip Keller, who wrote "A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23", sheep are very reluctant to lie down. He said that four requirements must be met before they will lie down:1) They are very timid and must be free of all fear first.2) They must not feel intimidated by sheep around them.3) They must be free of torment from flies or parasites.4) They will not lie down unless totally free of hunger.-I spotted sheep in Colonial Williamsburg Friday evening. They were all 'standing up' and busy eating the grass at their feet. Some of the sheep, like the one pictured, were sorely in need of shearing. They were the picture of harmlessness, and I suppose, vulnerability. As we consider how "The Lord is our shepherd" we realize that we, also, are vulnerable. And like the sheep that Phillip Keller described we cannot find complete contentment unless we are free from fear, intimidation, torment or hunger. In both a natural, survival, sense and a spiritual...heart-peace sense we need a Shepherd's assistance. Keller discussed how, as a shepherd, his very presence would bring calm, settle disputes and reassure the sheep of protection and provision.-Ezekiel repeats the picture of God as our shepherd in chapter 34. Here is a passage that restates the thoughts we've just discussed:-Ezekiel 34:15 "I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice."-May the Lord be your shepherd and may you find peace and comfort to also lie down,Rob Smith
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