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)
Two Kinds of Slow
He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. God is the shepherd in Isaiah’s picture, and he comes with power and rules with a mighty arm.
There are two kinds of slow in that flock. The lambs can’t make the distance at all, so they come up off the ground and ride against his chest. The ewes with young at their heels can walk, and only at their own speed, so he leads them gently. He is the one who moves, both times.
Today is a hard day in a lot of houses. Some of the people reading this had a mother who died, or a mother they haven’t spoken to in a long time, or a quiet house they never chose and are tired of explaining, or a grown child they’re sure they failed. The gentle leading in the picture goes to mothers, and a woman with no children is left looking at that half from outside. It answers how fast a nursing ewe can walk, and none of them earned it. The arms are the other half, and they are for the ones who can’t walk it at all.
If today you can’t make the walk at all, the arms are the half of the picture you’re in. He picks the lambs up before they’ve done anything to earn it, and the rest of the walk happens against his chest.
Somewhere this afternoon a man at a parts counter reaches for the third bin from the end without looking. Whatever today is for him, the shelf is the same as it was. At five he pulls the shutter down to knee height. Someone ducks under it and comes up to the counter with nothing in her hands, and he straightens, and he leaves the shutter where it is.
A Prayer to Remember
The person I most want to help today has a kind of pain I’ve never had. Stay close to her, Lord, and don’t wait until the right words turn up. And when I’m the one who can’t make the distance, come and get me.
In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
