Feed My Sheep

The holidays have come and gone…but the few extra pounds that I gained over the holidays have lingered!

And if I am completely honest, I haven’t been too concerned with those few extra pounds!

I know spring and summer are coming and I will be outside walking…hopefully jogging a little…and riding my bike, so I know I will be adding those calorie-burning activities to the workouts that I am currently doing!

I was actually pretty content with this plan

Until…

I was sitting on the couch with three of my darling grandsons, and one of them…Hudson…patted my tummy and asked…”Gammy, do you have a baby in your tummy?”

And before I could reply…Beau patted my tummy and asked…”Do you, Gammy?”

I smiled at both of them and assured them that Gammy did not have a baby in her tummy!

I was already thinking that I might need to become a little more aggressive in dropping those additional pounds, when the next question came from Hudson!

“Gammy, you really can’t have a baby in your tummy…because you are older…right”?

If you could have seen his expression…all-knowing that there was no way someone my age could be having a baby…it was priceless!

I assured Hudson that was true, but now was thinking…not only do I need to get these additional pounds off, but I also need to search for a miracle night cream/moisturizer that will minimize my wrinkles!

I decided not to ponder this too much as I continued to spend the rest of the day with the boys doing fun things!!

However, I spent the following day with three of my other grandsons!

And out of the blue…Graham asked me the same question!!

Seriously, I was sitting on the floor with them (while their parents were in the kitchen cooking dinner)…when Graham asked…”Gammy, do you have a baby in your tummy”?

Before I could respond, my oldest son, Zach, asked…”What did you just say, Graham?”

Zach was kind of smiling, but I’m not sure I found it quite as funny this time!

I told Zach and Rachel that Hudson had asked me the same thing yesterday!

We all laughed, but I realized…that sometimes…we have to hear something a few times before it really sinks in!

The current bible study I am doing discussed when Jesus asked Peter something numerous times:

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

            “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

            Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

            Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

            He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

            Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

            The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?”  He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

            Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”…John 21:15-17

My current bible study, Finding I Am by Lysa TerKeurst explained the above scriptures this way:

“Feed My Lambs” – In the morning the shepherd gets up early in the sheepfold and feeds the little lambs first.  He might feed them out of special food that he collected and tucked in his pocket – thing that would be tender for their stomach.  He would pick up the little lambs.  He would hold them and check them to make sure they were okay.  He would call them by name because he knew the lambs that intimately.

“Take Care of My Sheep” – After he feeds the lambs, the shepherd then carefully leads the sheep down to a place where they can be fed.  He leads them and cares for them.

“Feed My Sheep” – The last step once he has fed the lambs, cared for the sheep, and led them to a good pasture was to feed the sheep.

Lysa TerKeurst said she believed Jesus was trying to turn Peter from a fisherman into a shepherd.

Jesus is asking Peter to love Him more than the life Peter has known.  There is a big difference between a fisherman and a shepherd.

Fishermen quickly judged and counted the fish they caught.  They threw out the small fish because they’d have to pay more in taxes than the fish was actually worth. 

They would look at the fish and say, “This one’s in, this one’s out, this one’s in, this one’s out. 

A fisherman would never pick up the fish, love the fish, make sure the fish is okay, or name the fish.

Peter had to be changed from a quick-judging fisherman into a caring shepherd.  A shepherd of God’s people…(Finding I Am, p. 90-91).

I have read the above passaged several times, but had never though of Jesus desiring to turn Peter from a fisherman into a shepherd.

And learning the great care that a shepherd takes when caring for his sheep just blessed me so much!

We have a loving Father…the Good Shepherd…who cares for each of us just as intimately as a shepherd cares for his sheep.

He holds us…

He makes sure we are okay…

He calls us by name…

He leads us…

And when we are lost…He comes looking for us!

He loves us!

Oh how I pray that you know the Good Shepherd!  He loves you so much!

Dear Heavenly Father…thank you for rich teachings that draw us closer to you!  Thank you for caring for each of us so intimately…for being the Good Shepherd in our lives!