I love gazing out my back windows over the sheep fields. Today, the usually peaceful pastures had some action that got my attention! An ewe and her black lamb were penned just outside our windows. She had different markings than the sheep of our pastures. And, she seemed agitated in hanging out in this pen. She started to bang against the gate and dig below the gate, trying to escape. Her little one just watched and followed her steps.
She had no luck with digging, so up she went, landing on the top of the sharp edged, pointed rocks atop the six foot high wall. Nicely balancing, she looked into the other side of her pen, looked right and saw the open, green pastures. Whoosh! She was straight down to the green and wandering off while her abandoned lamb cried and cried and cried.
David, the shepherd, returned and discovered her wiles. Off he grunted, crook in hand, border collie at his side, in pursuit of the escaped ewe.
Calling out to him, I said, “she had quite a jump to get up there and out.” “Yeah, she belongs to another shepherd and thinks she can come here and act like they do out there where he keeps them; they are nothing but trouble here.”
It took a younger, more agile shepherd to capture this ewe and her lamb-- in spite of their struggles to get away. “I don’t have time for this today,” he said. “You are such a nuisance. Get over here.” Hardly in a cooperative disposition, he firmly held her neck, back legs and tail, dragging her into submission.
Right before my eyes was live-training in sheep misbehavior and correction 101. There are sheep who make trouble and defy all the walls one puts around them to provide safety and protection. They maneuver and struggle to “do it their own way.” Sounds like “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid upon Him the guilt and iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).
Sheep from another fold don’t always adapt well. Many decide to live on their own terms. I watched with humble empathy as our shepherds persisted in corralling this ewe and her trainee.
Personally, I’d like the ‘lambs of the world’ to cooperate, trust their Shepherd, believe He loves them intentionally and lavishly.But, that’s not how ‘real life’ is. Some sheep are content, some are not. Sheep and lambs do get frightened and run away, become will-full, or sick, or are abandoned through death, accidents, or poor care. They need tough shepherds to endure in caring for them. Shepherding is hard work. It’s what they do because it’s their job, their calling.
Sometimes, good shepherds give sheep a break. They snap their leg and then carry it around for the time of healing. During this time the scraped up scapegoat, whether ewe or me, has time to attune and attach to the Shepherd. “Lord, break my pride, my will, and if necessary, my leg to draw me to You. Amen.”
Bethyl Joy and Vance
