CLOSE TO THE HEART

Do you ever have the feeling that life may have passed you by; that somehow you’ve gotten lost in God’s great plan; that you have been put on a shelf and are no longer useful in the Kingdom; that the great dreams and promises of yesterday must have died because they just aren’t coming to pass?

Am I the only one who from time to time struggles to understand where my life is going? I’m not talking about the ultimate destination. That I’m very sure of! No, I’m talking about the fulfillment of this journey of life, the “three score and ten” that we have all been allotted.

When those moments of uncertainty come, and they will, at least if you’re human, here is a wonderful verse to reflect on:
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 40:11 NIV)

“He tends his flock like a shepherd.”
We, of course, are his flock and God watches over us like a shepherd. The imagery presented here is of the complete care that a shepherd has for his sheep. The shepherd guards his sheep, he guides them, feeds them, defends them, cares for them in all ways. God is in charge whether we understand what He is doing or not—He tends his flock!

“He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart.”
This is God’s care for us when we are at a point of being vulnerable; when we are feeling lost and alone or hurt, He will gather us in His arms. The picture here is of the lamb in the parable of The Lost Sheep (Mt. 18:12-14, Luke15:3-7). The shepherd had ninety-nine others and so why would he care about one? Well, this shepherd did and our Shepherd still does! The shepherd was not content with losing one. His attitude was not, “You can’t win them all!” No, the shepherd went after the one that lost its way! His commitment to us is, “This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing” (John 6:39). When he found the lamb, it was exhausted and frightened and the shepherd gently picked it up. Using his strength, he carried the lamb back to safety.

Here’s the scene:
The lamb was bewildered and lost. Just a few minutes ago everything had been going so great. Filled with youthful energy, the lamb could hardly contain himself and just couldn’t stay with the rest of the sheep. The relentless quest for discovery pulled the lamb farther and farther away from the rest of the sheep as he explored and experienced everything new. Slowly it dawned on the little one that the rest of the sheep and the shepherd were nowhere in sight; he didn’t know where they were, and he was alone and lost. His restless energy kept him moving but he couldn’t find his family or his friends. Being alone and in strange new territory began to bring anxiety and fear. Overhead he noticed that birds were gathering, birds he had been warned about, predators that preyed on small animals, and his anxiety level went up a notch. In the brush and woods around him were noises he had never heard before, noises that to him seemed unfriendly, and his fear level went up again. With the oncoming darkness, the lamb began to feel not just lost but completely helpless, and despair began to overtake him.

Suddenly his shepherd appeared and scooped the lamb up into his arms. The shepherd cradled the lamb in his arms and held him close to him, close to his heart, to quieten and reassure the frightened little one. He held the lamb close as a sign to predators that the lamb was his, they were as one, and in order to get to the lamb, the predators would have to go through the shepherd. The two made their way back home to the rest of the family with the lamb cradled close to the heart of the shepherd.

“Yea, thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil; for thou are with me” (Psalm 23:4).

He holds you close to His heart!