Sheep Wander, Shepherds Seek

Sheep Wander, Shepherds Seek

My friend, Rev. Tom Goode sent me a quote by Margaret Guenther: To be fully known is not possible in our human relationships, but it is the foundation of our relationship with Christ. To be known, fully known, is both painful and profoundly comforting. We accept the humble status of sheep, let our masks and defenses drop away, and allow the shepherd to carry us on his shoulder and occasionally poke us with his staff. Sometimes we are thwarted - the edge of the cliff doesn’t look too dangerous ... I wasn’t going to wander very far, honest

Sheep do wander There is a story of an American tourist who was traveling in the Middle East. He came upon several shepherds whose flocks had intermingled while drinking water from a brook. After an exchange of greetings, one of the shepherds turned toward the sheep and called out, "Manah. Manah. Manah." (Manah means, "follow me" in Arabic.)

Immediately his sheep separated themselves from the rest and followed him. Then one of the two remaining shepherds called out, "Manah. Manah." and his sheep left the common flock to follow him. The traveler then said to the third shepherd, "I would like to try that. Let me put on your cloak and turban and see if I can get the rest of the sheep to follow me."

The shepherd smiled knowingly as the traveler wrapped himself in the cloak, put the turban on his head and called out, "Manah. Manah." The sheep did not respond to the stranger’s voice. Not one of them moved toward him. "Will the sheep ever follow someone other than you?" The traveler asked. "Oh yes," the shepherd replied, "sometimes a sheep gets sick, and then it will follow anyone." [2] John M. Braaten, The Greatest Wonder of All, CSS Publishing