"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.

just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep



Our Good Shepherd

Hear, Trust, Follow


see cartoon below


If the victim and the perpetrator are the same person, then who gets the blame?



Christ is our good shepherd! Alleluia!



We, like sheep, could not survive long without our Good Shepherd. He not only takes the blame for us by dying in our place for our sins – He restores our relationship with God, bringing us salvation and eternal life through His resurrection and defeat of sin death and the devil



A shepherd in Jesus day did not walk behind the flock, beating them with a stick to keep them moving. He walked in front of them, seeking out a safe path to food and water and shelter. The sheep followed him, because they recognized his voice, and they trusted him. Jesus tells us that’s the kind of Good Shepherd he is. He leads, and we hear, trust and follow.



As we stay in Word and Sacrament,
He leads us beside still waters and restores our soul.

hear the 23rd Psalm



God not only gives us His peace through the power of His Holy Spirit, He restores our relationship with Him, giving us the strength we need to go out and re-establish our relationships with those around us. A soul that is restored, still, and at peace with God, relying in Him for all things, shares that stillness and peace with others.



We follow Christ as he actively leads us in the paths of righteousness.
We are being cared for by God so we can care for others, and the world will know who is the shepherd, and who are the sheep!



That’s the way it is with us, followers of Jesus, members of his flock.
We are all called to have a little shepherd in us. But we don’t follow each other.
Together, we follow Jesus, for there is but one flock, and one Christ, our Shepherd.



Illness, death, or economic turmoil can never snatch us from His hand.



We are:



Never alone!

Always secure in Christ and our gift of eternal life!

Certain that we will never be lost by Christ!



God provides all things as our Good Shepherd. He gives us His righteousness through the cross of Jesus, leading us in paths of righteousness by His Spirit filled Word.



Why? For US! And for His names sake!



Go and live as sheep fed and led by His goodness and mercy all the days of your life!





Amen

Ezmoney, thank you for the mid week boost. Sometimes , let's say most of the time I feel so alone. Right now I am new and looking around, to what group I want to join. But did want to say thank you for caring to post the mid week boost , you gave me a boost!

I needed this boost, it has been a trying week for me, and sometimes I try to do it on my own and forget that I have help all the time, all along the way. Thanks for this post.

Thanks, Gary. When I got my diagnosis I asked my pastor for a scripture.He reccommended the 23 Psalm. That is such a familiar and loved passage that we forget it has practical promises that we all can use.

BARGOO ~ when I got sick a few years back (winter of 2004-05), the 23rd PSALM is one of the main scriptures that helped pull me through. I read that chapter every night before I went to bed and it gave me such peace.

THANKS GARY ~ for taking the time to post these and please do pass along thanks to your friends who prepare them each week also. I was just reminding DH that GOD is the good, pure Father that we all can go to and we can always trust Him to do what's best for us; and JESUS, is the good friend and brother and Shepherd that we can go to and trust to always be there for us when we need Him (especially when our families or friends or others let us down).

GOD will never let us down; He is ever faithful; and He will carry us through life (Isaiah 46:4). JESUS said that He would be with us always, even until the end of the age (Matthew 28:20 and Psalm 25:28).

Thanks Gals. This is an old one from May that Bootsie pulled up. I don't know why but we didn't get one e-mailed to us this week...they must have been busy.

For folks new here and looking for a boost, from time to time, don't forget you can pull them up from the past weeks just like Bootsie did.