April 9

Feed My Sheep

        When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”  A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.  Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.”  (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”

John 21:15-19

           

            Peter’s had an emotional week.  There was the triumphal entry where crowds lined the streets, cheering Jesus and the expectation that God’s kingdom was coming to earth just around the next corner.  There was the Last Supper where Jesus shared some of His greatest insights with those who were closest to Him.  The Garden was terrifying when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus and then there was Jesus’ trial.  As he waited in the courtyard, Peter denied Jesus three times, just as his master had foretold.  Then came Jesus’ death and rumored resurrection.  And now they were standing face to face, Master and Disciple.  Jesus and Peter. 

            “Do you love me?  Feed my sheep.”  Only seven words, but full of meaning.  Our love of God is tied into our obedience towards God.  He has an invitation for each of us, a calling for what He has given us to do in the midst of this life.  Part of that call is how we deal with the world.  Who do we interact with?  How do we love and serve them?  How do we show them that we are followers of Jesus?  How do we make this world a better place through our vocation?  Part of that call is how we interact with the Church.  How do we build up the body of believers?  How do we carry each other’s burdens and bring healing and wholeness to our brothers and sisters?

            Part of that is how we partner with our spouses in parenting our children.  God gave these children specifically to you and to me.  They are the sheep that we are invited to feed.  They are the puzzle that we are to solve, the lives that we are to cherish and hold close to our hearts.  Too many believers, especially Christian leaders, treat their families as afterthoughts as they give the best of themselves to their followers and whatever is left to their spouse and children.  Their children grow up believing that they are less valuable than the mission and only spend time with their parents in the context of working for God.

            Our families are living parables, pictures of God’s relationship with us.  Just as God gave the very best that He had to us…just as God delights in us…just as God longs to spend time with us each and every day, so we are to favor and cherish our kids.  The four best moments of every day are when I first see each of my children and my wife.  Whether it is the first thing in the morning or when I am coming home from work, a smile hits my face when they come into the room.

            As a special needs parent, it is easy to lose that joy and delight in our kids.  Every time that we are in the room together, there is some new thing, some new problem that needs to be addressed and worked through.  The wheelchair needs to be replaced.  The medication is having strange side effects.  There is a new phobia.  This teacher needs to meet with us or that doctor is concerned with some test results.  They are another day, another week, another year closer to being on their own and all parties involved are still not ready for that.

            You have been given this child not just to take care of their physical and emotional and spiritual needs.  You have been given this child not just for your own growth and development.  You have been given this child not just to be a testimony to the world about disabilities and unconditional love.  All these things are true and you have been given this child to love and to be loved, to have someone that brings delight and joy to your heart.  They are not a job, they are an invitation that is intended to awaken your heart and stimulate your joy and engage every part of who God has made you to be.

           

A moment to reflect:

How do you enjoy your child?