Watch/Listen
Making Yourself Shepherdable
Brian Mashburn
October 29, 2017
Audio Player
On Being Easy To Shepherd
I can only think of a few reasons that a person makes it difficult on an elder to shepherd them: they do not think they need it, they do not want it, or they do not trust.
Pride, apathy, and distrust. These exempt a person from being, if I may create a word, "shepherdable."
It is right to look "around" for good shepherds. But it is equally important to look "inward" and ask: "Am I a good sheep?" Here are some tests you can use:
Do I pray for the well-being of my shepherds?
Do I listen to and respond to their voice?
Do I "lie down" in the pastures they lead us to?
Do I know my shepherds and let them know me?
Do I tell my shepherds often of my spiritual successes?
Do I watch how they live in order to imitate them?
Do I humbly let them know when I am in spiritual need?
Do I put into practice what I have heard from them?
Do I consider it more blessed to give to my shepherds than to receive from them?
Do I avoid being scattered from the rest of the flock?
Do I turn from wickedness whenever it approaches?
Do I serve the weaker sheep around me?
Do I understand and submit to a shepherd's authority?
Am I a faithful steward of what is put in my charge?
Do I hold my shepherds in highest regard simply because of the work that is required of them?
Do I make their work a joy by obeying them?
Do I follow them?
There are more, but if you are finding yourself answering 'yes' to these kinds of questions, then you have your answer to the question of "Am I a good sheep?"
Yes.