7 July 2015 - wrestling for the weary

Let us seek the Good Shepherd. We are more sheep-like than we like to admit. We need a shepherd. Without a shepherd we wander and are lost. We are troubled and abandoned. We are anxious about everything. With a bad shepherd we are easily misled and exploited. But with Jesus we find the one who leads us beside still waters and makes us lie down in green pastures. He leads and guides us in ways that are level and smooth. With Jesus we are not lost, not anxious, not misled or exploited.

Our society is misled. Indeed, it is enslaved by the enemy, the one who is the opposite of the Good Shepherd. We are like a demoniac who cannot speak. We are kept in silence, unable to proclaim the praise of God or the truth of God. The enemy keeps us silent. He assures us it is for our own good but in fact he bullies us into it. He uses tactics of fear and isolation to keep our mouths closed.

But Jesus is able to drive out demons like this. Let us cry out to him.

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word.
Show your wondrous mercies,
O savior of those who flee from their foes.

The secret is to cling so closely to the Good Shepherd that the enemy has no chance to get near us. He can't sneak up on us and poach us when our shepherd isn't looking if we just always stay this close. Let us learn from the persistence of Jacob and say, "I will not let you go until you bless me." Staying this close to God is going to feel like wrestling with him a lot of the time. God transforms us by his mercy into the people we should be. And we hold on tight as he does so. Pleasant? Not always, but far better than being enslaved by the enemy. We grow in freedom. It sometimes doesn't feel this way, but we are the ones that choose to hold on. God insists on our permission in order to work in our hearts. We are never more free than when we offer ourselves entirely to God.

Nothing like him has ever been seen in Israel. Jesus opens our mouths to speak. He sets captives free. Let us cling to him like Jacob. Let us plead that he send more of his laborers to us. More than ever we need shepherds after his own heart to guide us (cf. Jer. 3:15).

Hide me in the shadow of your wings.
I in justice shall behold your face;
on waking, I shall be content in your presence.