Limping through life

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27).

There was a traveler who was taking a walking tour of Israel. He chanced upon a shepherd who was tending his flock, and soon the two men were chatting as they walked together. The visitor eventually noticed that one of the older sheep walked with a limp and always stayed close to the shepherd’s side. Curious, he asked the sheepherder about it.

The shepherd explained that the sheep was the oldest in the flock, but the animal’s prospects for long life had been doubtful at first. Soon after it was born, the sheep owner discovered that the lamb was partly deaf. Frustratingly, it kept wandering away, far beyond its ability to hear the call of the man who cared for it. Many were the times when the woolly little animal nearly met its end, before the shepherd found and rescued it. At last, seeing no other way to keep the lamb nearby so that he could care for it and protect it, the shepherd deliberately broke its leg. Ever since that day the sheep limped, but now it now stayed close to its master for guidance and protection.

Sometimes we wonder why God allows grief to darken our lives. But like the limping sheep, we were born partly deaf; we don’t hear as we should. Want proof? How many children are able to completely tune out their parents or teachers when words are spoken that they don’t want to hear? We call it selective hearing. To varying degrees, everyone tunes out God. There are times when our desire for reckless thrills leads us away from God, and because sin makes us partly deaf we don’t hear the Good Shepherd calling us back. Then we get into a terrible situation, trapped with no apparent way out.

Jesus does not want us getting into such dire straits. So sometimes He hobbles us by allowing troubles to afflict us. This is an act of loving concern; the Savior wants to keep you close by His side always so He can look after you. Maybe you are limping through life. You may have experienced sorrow, bitter disappointment, or frustration with a body that doesn’t serve you as it should. If you are afflicted with some burden that causes you to limp through life, you can be certain that in His love for you, God will use that burden to draw you close to the Shepherd’s side. You may limp, but that limp is a blessing if it keeps you close to the only One who can give you the care and protection that you desperately need.