Catching Up
To all my loyal readers, I apologize for not blogging recently. My mind is getting older, my thinking not as fast as it used to be; therefore, in the past month, I've had to deal with too many things, in too short of time, and thus, neglected my blog.
My niece, Aline, arrived from West Virginia to live with us at the end of March, and we have tried to introduce her to Maui and all it has to offer, have gotten her settled in the house, and she has also found a job that she loves at an animal refuge taking care of special needs rabbits. She loves it. My great-niece, Arley, has also been living with us almost a year and is attending beauty school, so with all that company brings to a household, I've been just trying to keep up with meals, laundry, shopping, sight-seeing, etc.
This morning in my devotionals, though, I read scripture that I just had to share with you, busy or not. The picture of the shepherd and his sheep was in almost every scripture I turned to this morning. The picture that remained with me is in Isaiah 40:9-11, and Revelation 7:17:
"See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power; and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. He tends his flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young." (Isaiah 40:9-11)
"For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." (Rev. 7:17)
Jesus told his disciples that He was the Good Shepherd and often called his followers sheep, or "little flock." But God also called Jesus "the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world." Jesus was both Shepherd and the Lamb. As God's sacrificial Lamb, He paid for our sins by His own blood. As the Shepherd, He will lead his flock to springs of living water in eternity with Him forever. Isn't that a marvelous picture. I love the Isaiah scripture and the picture it offers---Jesus carrying me in his arms close to his heart and leading me to the river of life that flows through the middle of the city of God.
Let's worship the Shepherd and the Lamb today!
Sandy
My niece, Aline, arrived from West Virginia to live with us at the end of March, and we have tried to introduce her to Maui and all it has to offer, have gotten her settled in the house, and she has also found a job that she loves at an animal refuge taking care of special needs rabbits. She loves it. My great-niece, Arley, has also been living with us almost a year and is attending beauty school, so with all that company brings to a household, I've been just trying to keep up with meals, laundry, shopping, sight-seeing, etc.
This morning in my devotionals, though, I read scripture that I just had to share with you, busy or not. The picture of the shepherd and his sheep was in almost every scripture I turned to this morning. The picture that remained with me is in Isaiah 40:9-11, and Revelation 7:17:
"See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power; and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. He tends his flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young." (Isaiah 40:9-11)
"For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." (Rev. 7:17)
Jesus told his disciples that He was the Good Shepherd and often called his followers sheep, or "little flock." But God also called Jesus "the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world." Jesus was both Shepherd and the Lamb. As God's sacrificial Lamb, He paid for our sins by His own blood. As the Shepherd, He will lead his flock to springs of living water in eternity with Him forever. Isn't that a marvelous picture. I love the Isaiah scripture and the picture it offers---Jesus carrying me in his arms close to his heart and leading me to the river of life that flows through the middle of the city of God.
Let's worship the Shepherd and the Lamb today!
Sandy
posted by Sandy Fewell at 7:08 AM
3 Comments:
Hi Sandy,
I miss being able to read your insightful devotional articles. I also understand how hard it is to find time to write. I look forward to seeing you back in the blogging saddle sometime soon. Blessings on you and Dick, and your family.
How encouraging you are! I have had others tell me that they would like for me to start my devotional blog again. After you've been away for a while, it takes a bit of courage to start again, but if I would just surrender to God's will more completely, the fear would dissipate.
I had a spiritual bump in the road last year when I was pounced upon by a family member and I lost confidence, but I should not allow that to keep me from doing what God wants me to do. The blog was my way of telling people that "Jesus saves" and just because the message isn't received by some, is no reason to continue to pursue His will for me. Thank you so much for your encouragement, Mike!
Hi again, Sandy
I understand what you are saying about how some painful, undeserved criticism can set you back on your heels and cause you to lose heart. I occasionally get that in the pastorate, as well as in responses to my blog. It hurts. But that critical person always has the option of not reading your blog if he/she doesn’t like it. Speaking for the 99.9%, don’t let one sorehead keep you from doing something that employs your God-given writing gift, gives you joy, and brings blessing to people like me. Ramel says to tell you hello.
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