Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 23; Daniel 12:1-13; John 10:1-18; 2 Corinthians 11:30-12:6; Psalm 100
The imagery used within today’s passage from John’s Gospel is rich indeed. I particularly connected with the language of the first nine verses. In that section of today’s passage, Jesus talks about how an individual goes about relating to the sheep in the pen. In The Message paraphrasing of the text, Jesus contrasts the approaches as the sheep rustler approach vs. the shepherd approach. In speaking of the two, Jesus notes: “The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice” (John 10:2-3 – The Message). This metaphor sounds great within the context of the sheep and shepherd, but how does it work out there in the real world – when we (the sheep) are inundated with numerous competing voices? Can we really pick out the voice of our shepherd? I’ve been wrestling with this challenge in relation to our church’s attempt to establish an emerging worship community. We have so many voices out their suggesting how we should do this (i.e. establish a target demographic, market to the target demographic, spend X amount of dollars to incorporate trendy new elements of worship, establish benchmarks for growth, etc.). Sadly, these voices to me sound little like the voice of the shepherd. It has been an individual and collective challenge to quiet some of these voices and create an intimate worshipping community based upon the voice of the shepherd and not another voice. Perhaps there are areas in your life where competing voices seem to be clamoring for your attention – an area of your life such as a relationship, a job, or a family matter. I would encourage you to spend time listening - not for just any old voice, but the calming, peaceful, and purposeful voice of the shepherd - as you seek to negotiate the challenges before you. Perhaps you’ll find that the closer you listen, the easier your decision making process might become. Til next time…
The imagery used within today’s passage from John’s Gospel is rich indeed. I particularly connected with the language of the first nine verses. In that section of today’s passage, Jesus talks about how an individual goes about relating to the sheep in the pen. In The Message paraphrasing of the text, Jesus contrasts the approaches as the sheep rustler approach vs. the shepherd approach. In speaking of the two, Jesus notes: “The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice” (John 10:2-3 – The Message). This metaphor sounds great within the context of the sheep and shepherd, but how does it work out there in the real world – when we (the sheep) are inundated with numerous competing voices? Can we really pick out the voice of our shepherd? I’ve been wrestling with this challenge in relation to our church’s attempt to establish an emerging worship community. We have so many voices out their suggesting how we should do this (i.e. establish a target demographic, market to the target demographic, spend X amount of dollars to incorporate trendy new elements of worship, establish benchmarks for growth, etc.). Sadly, these voices to me sound little like the voice of the shepherd. It has been an individual and collective challenge to quiet some of these voices and create an intimate worshipping community based upon the voice of the shepherd and not another voice. Perhaps there are areas in your life where competing voices seem to be clamoring for your attention – an area of your life such as a relationship, a job, or a family matter. I would encourage you to spend time listening - not for just any old voice, but the calming, peaceful, and purposeful voice of the shepherd - as you seek to negotiate the challenges before you. Perhaps you’ll find that the closer you listen, the easier your decision making process might become. Til next time…
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