The Good Shepherd.4

"Still, there are many sheep that are lost outside the fold:

I must gather them as well.
They too,
will rejoice
at the sound
of my voice,
and will become members
of one great fold,
with one shepherd
to care for them
night and day."

--Jesus

"Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7

I've been thinking about how our "cares" usually aren't a simple, focused problem but rather layers of complexity with which we struggle. An incident with our second born son perfectly illustrates this.

Last fall, friends found Jesse in his home lying in a pool of his own blood! Their timely discovery and the care of the ICU unit of ProMedica hospital in Toledo saved his life!

Certainly our primary care was saving his life; there was an emotional roller coaster of attempts to locate and stop the internal bleeding. He went through 35 units of blood (our bodies hold 8-12 units at any one time.)

But then there were

• financial cares,
• and taking time off work to stay by his side cares,
• and Jesse's job related cares
• and dog care cares
• and what-is-the-purpose-of-this cares.

So casting our cares on Him is more than hoping Jesus takes notice of our problems or feels empathy at our struggles. 

It is trusting that He takes the complexity of our cares and orchestrates them to lead us to His higher ways!

"Is it enough that God thinks about you?
To be something to God--is that not praise enough?
To be a thing God cares for and would have complete for Himself--because it is worth caring for--is not that life enough?"

 -George MacDonald

We rejoice that Our Shepherd cared to keep our son alive. We rejoice to be privileged to hear and see His voice in the tender care of the people who saved Jesse's life. We hope to be the kind of followers that the Shepherd can use to attract others to the flock.

What a Shepherd, what a Savior!