The Lord is my Shepherd
Last Sunday, Pastor Ho Kit continued our “Safety Belt” series, preaching “The Lord is my Shepherd.” The message was great, so great that C-Mo and I were deeply touched. On Monday, a pastor couple asked us “How do you allocate your time for discipleship?” To that, I gave a short reply, “80-20 rule.” Immediately, C-Mo asked the co-worker who was with us to explain what “80-20 rule” was. Even with many words, he failed to explain it, despite having spent much time with us. There and then, we realized that he has no idea how we prioritize discipleship.
During the MG12 cell group on Monday night, I asked all MG leaders to describe how to practice “80-20 rule in discipleship”. I am thankful that many of my disciples do understand the key. Among them, the one who has been part of our group the shortest time gave the most precise and concise answer – and she had only once heard me sharing about this. Then, I asked them two questions: “Before the Great Shepherd, what kind of sheep are you?” and “MG Leaders are doing discipleship, so what kind of shepherd are you?”
Everyone had a unique answer, including “I am the black sheep among the white sheep, unsociable”, “As a shepherd, I aim to arm my flock with iron armor and teach them martial arts”, “I am of free spirit, I enjoy wandering around”, “I love freedom, so I think my sheep shall follow me out of their own will. Little did I know that I need to settle disputes and arguments.” Hearing their replies, I thought to myself, “Leadersheep follow us as they like, no wonder the sheep have of all kinds of problems.”
A “Leadersheep” is a sheep which stays close to the shepherd, so as to lead the flock to follow the shepherd. MG Leaders and cell leaders are the “Leadersheep”. If they think that they fully appreciate the heart of the shepherd while in fact knowing very little (or nothing) about the shepherd, one shall doubt where they will lead their flock to, let alone leading them to follow the shepherd. When a “Leadersheep” or “Shepherd” does not know his role, sooner or later, the flock will run into troubles.
Some cell leaders are not following the shepherd as a “leadersheep” should; instead, they regard their shepherd as being a disciplinarian or judge. Therefore, they “protect” their flock like a hen protects her chicks; and the truth is that they stand in the way between the shepherd and the flock, refusing to let the shepherd know or “touch” the flock. In the end, they do what should not be done and say what should not be said, causing all sorts of problems – but they foolishly believe that they are leading the flock faithfully.
If a leader does not know how to draw close to the shepherd and does not trust the shepherd, then he unknowingly becomes an opponent of the shepherd. “Leadersheep” must side with the shepherd, and understand and support the shepherd. Only then can the shepherd lead the sheep “beside still waters” and make them “lie on green pastures”. Only then can the sheep face the enemy and be at peace, knowing that the shepherd is around.
The Church Basketball League has started, many people have joined our A and B teams and it takes time for us to build good rapport. In order to score well, we need good shooters and a good way to get the ball to our shooters. As the sheep move after “listening” to the voice of the shepherd, they may cross over mountains and hills, out of deep valley and into safe pastures. Likewise, players must “listen” to the instruction of the coach carefully in order to win the game.
Brothers and sisters, if we want the Lord to be our Shepherd, we must listen to Him!•[2018.11.25]