What images do you have...
What images do you have of a shepherd and a flock? Does the shepherd stand in front of the flock, leading the sheep? Does the shepherd stand behind the flock, prodding the sheep down a path? Or does the shepherd stand in the very midst of the flock, looking over each lamb, tending to ewes due to give birth, and healing the rough sores on the ram’s back? What sort of shepherd do you picture? What sort of shepherd do you need? Jesus looked out on the congregation by the seaside and had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
