"Oh, look!" Amelia said as her mother parked the car at Grandpa's farm. "I see Grandpa's new sheep! Let's go pet them." The children climbed out of the car and raced toward the sheep, but the animals darted to the far corner of the pen.
"Oops! We scared them," said Josiah. "Let's try again. Let's pull some grass for them, and this time let's walk, not run."
Amelia agreed, and they each pulled a handful of grass and slowly carried it toward the corner where the sheep huddled. But as they approached, the flock spun around and dashed away. Amelia dropped her grass. "I give up."
"Me too," said Josiah, throwing his grass on the ground.
A moment later, the children saw their grandfather coming. They ran to give him a hug. "Grandpa, why do you have those baby bottles?" Amelia asked.
"Two of my lambs need these," replied Grandpa. "I feed them because their mother died."
"I wish I could feed one of them," said Amelia, "but your sheep don't like us. They run away."
Grandpa smiled. "Watch," he said as he led the children to a small pen beside the barn. They saw that it held two little lambs. "Here, Fluffy. Here, Snowball," Grandpa called as he opened the pen. The lambs scampered out and followed him as he crisscrossed the lawn.
Josiah laughed. "They're playing follow the leader!"
Grandpa handed each of the kids a bottle. "Here," he said. "You can hold these for them."
"Cool!" said Amelia, offering her bottle to one of the lambs. She giggled in delight as the lamb eagerly took it. "This one dances while he eats!" Amelia looked at Grandpa. "But why wouldn't your other sheep eat the grass we pulled for them?"
"Sheep know their shepherd's voice and follow him. They tend to run away from strangers," Grandpa explained. "It reminds me that we are like sheep. We follow our Shepherd--Jesus--by obeying Him and trusting Him to guide us and take care of us. We don't let anything or anyone lead us away from Him because we've heard His voice and know that He is the Good Shepherd who calls us to eternal life with Him."
–Margaret M. Primrose
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are you following Jesus, the Good Shepherd? You may not have wool and four legs, but the Bible often refers to Christians as sheep who hear and follow Jesus’s voice. He’s the one who loves us so much that He gave His life to save us and promises to guide us, care for us, and supply our needs. If you trust in Jesus, you are following Him.
TODAY'S KEY VERSE: John 10:27 (KJV)
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. (NKJV)