a Pinch of Rocky

Rocky and My Shepherd

"Jesus Christ is My Shepherd"

Have you ever seen a baby sheep? Our friends, J & A, have a farm and just bought a flock of sheep. A whole flock! They found a good deal on Craigslist, and purchased 16 sheep. There were mommy sheep, one daddy sheep, and tons of little baby lambs. They are the cutest little fuzz balls that I have ever seen!

About a week after they got the sheep, one of the younger teenage sheep, who they didn’t even know was pregnant, had a little baby sheep in the middle of the night. While in lamb-birth, the mama found herself surrounded by some coyotes outside of her barn. As you would expect, she was a little distressed and when early morning came, J & A heard some soft whining. To their surprise, they found a baby lamb. The mama sheep still wants nothing to do with it, she actually tries to kill it! They think she might associate the lamb with the coyotes. It is very sad.

But now, J & A have their own little lamb! It is adorable and so tiny, and I fall in love every time that I see it. That being said, I am REALLY glad that J & A have a lamb and that we deal strictly with humans. J & A take turns bottle feeding the lamb every four hours, even during the night time. It has become so attached to them, that he cries every time J & A are around but busy doing something else. The lamb, Rocky, is such a huge handful, that they have tossed around the idea of selling him (or eating him), a few times. They are too attached now, so they never would hurt that baby. In fact, they are very protective of Rocky, and very sensitive to how he is adapting to his farm life.

I thought of Rocky a lot this week while doing the reading for my religion class. We are learning about Jesus Christ as our shepherd. Because of my recent experience in lamb-li-ness, I am able to gain a little prospective on the topic. I don’t think I could handle the care of one little Rocky, much less millions and millions of little Rockys!

In John 10, Christ is compared to a shepherd. I learned from my manual that shepherds back in those days were very faithful and loyal to their sheep. They would even give their own life in protection of their sheep. They kept their sheep in a sheepfold at night, which is big, tall walls, that have sharp points sticking out of the top to keep predators out. There was only one way in, the door. At nighttime, one shepherd would watch several different flocks of sheep in the sheepfold, and he would stand guard at the door while all the other shepherds slept in their homes.

Vocab: That shepherd standing guard was called a porter.

When the sun came up, the shepherds would return to the sheepfold to collect their sheep. The porter personally recognized each shepherd, so he would allow only shepherds to go in to get sheep out. Here is where it gets interesting.

Verse 10 reads: “To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.”

When the shepherds would go in to the sheepfold, each shepherd would call his flock and lead them to where they were headed that day. The sheep were so attached to the shepherd, that they actually recognized their master by his voice! Up until the last few weeks, I would have been shocked that that could happen. But because of my experience with Rocky, I totally believe that! I have seen Rocky search out only the A in J & A, and whine to be fed. I believe that each one of those sheep in the sheepfold can tell when their master is the one calling.

In verse 5 states: “ And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.”

There are several things that our lesson for this assignment touched on, but this was the part that touched my heart the most this week. Which leads me in to a few questions:

How is Jesus Christ like those shepherds?

First, he would do anything for the sheep. We know that because he already did. The porter would do anything for the sheep, even give up his own life. Christ, who loved each of us so much gave his own life as a humble sacrifice to save us.

Second, Jesus Christ knows each of us individually. The shepherd knows his sheep, he can even call them each by name. What a marvelous blessing it is to know that the Savior knows me, personally, and loves me as an individual!

Third, His sheep know His voice. When a shepherd calls his sheep, they come. When someone else calls them, they are scared and confused. 

How do we know if we are one's of the Savior's fold?

A good way to tell if you are part of the Savior's fold, is to ask yourself, "can I recognize the Savior's voice?" Can I listen to the words of the of the Savior, and know that it is Him? Part of being able to recognize His voice means that I have to be able to hear it. Are there distractions all around me that prevent me from hearing my shepherd? Can I hear words of divinity and recognize them as truth?

I can't imagine the love that the Savior must feel for each of us, to be able to give His own life in behalf of this crazy flock. I am so grateful that he knows me by name, and that he wants me to be a part of His flock so bad, that he suffered the Atonement in my behalf. I feel honored to be a part of His flock!

Which Group Am I In?

a Tittle of the Followers

John 6

It all started right after the multitudes of people gathered on the hillside (see above pic), and the people witnessed the complete miracle that Jesus Christ performed with the bread loves and the fish. While they were understandably in awe of what was happening, many people neglected to hear the Savior's words and teachings and focus only on the physical act of the miracle. They were so excited to see a good show, that they missed all of the important parts!

The people then followed (almost stalked), Christ, until they finally caught up to him. They asked him

"....Rabbi, when calmest thou hither?" (John 6:25)

To which he replied: 

"..Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled." (John 6:26) 

or  

JST: "...ye desire to keep my sayings, neither because ye saw the miracles."

He knew that those people were not there to hear his words, or find more truth in his teachings. They were there to see what they might compare to a circus act. When something spiritually magnificent like this takes place, the "blind" people don't see the reason behind it, and can only see the coolness factor. 

Which should lead us to question our own motives: 

What motivates my desire to "seek" the Lord?

Do I have the right reasons for seeking the Lord, or do I have more superficial motives? As I thought about what might constitute a superficial motive, I realized that they were sometimes very sneaky. Sometimes a motive that might be a righteous and praiseworthy choice, might not be the best reason. For example: I made a list, and on this list, I put all of the reasons that I personally feel a motivation to follow Christ. It looks like this:

-A deeper testimony

-A better understanding

- Stronger faith

These are all good choices- they are things that will bring me closer to Christ, and they will better my life. The bottom of my list looked like this:

-For my children

-For my husband

-Because I should

While these are good things, and very respectable (at least I thought so), they may not be sufficient for motivation. Shouldn't my desire to "seek" Christ be because I need it, and can't imagine living my life without it? After a lot of reflection this week on my list, I decided to take the bottom half of the list off.  Why? Because I think that those are less like motives, and more like consequences. As I strive to attain the first half, the second half happens as a result. I need to seek Christ, for myself  and with the right motives. In turn, my husband and my family will be enriched. Step one: Check your motives.

Christ, knowing the unholy motives of the people, gave them the opportunity to understand, by presenting them with the Bread of Life discourse. He tells them, in verse 27 of John 6:

"Labour not for the near which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed."

To the reader, this means to look and work for the things that do not end in this life, but for things that we carry with us into eternity. Another example of this is found in Matthew 6:19-20, where Christ talks about treasures on Earth, and treasures in heaven. 

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:"

Simply written, things on this earth perish, but things of heaven last forever. What are things of Heaven then? Your faith, your testimony, your education, your understanding and your choices. 

Then, in verse 21 of the same chapter, Christ tells the people:

"For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also"

Christ tells them that whatever they hold as treasure, will also be their priority. So now, I ask myself this question: 

What do I consider to be treasure? 

Do I cling to my scriptures and honestly seek Christ in prayer, holding every ounce of faith and testimony as my greatest possession? Or do I just really like my boat/car/kids/husband/toys/

computer/house/job..... the most? Because what ever the answer to that question is, determines where my priorities lie. Step Two: Pick priorities.

In John 6:35, Christ explains to the people where their priorities should be, and where to find the treasure. 

"I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst"

If we want to fill ourselves with eternal life, then we need to partake of the Bread of Life, which is Jesus Christ. We need to seek Him, we need to partake of His sacrament, and we need to follow His ways. 

The people, because of their levels of faith, were divided into three groups:

Group 1 

People who didn't want to understand and mocked Him (John 6:41)

Group 2

People who left Him when they thought it was hard (Disciples in John 6: 66)

Group 3

People who were willing to understand and follow Him wherever he went (Apostles in John 6:68-69)

This brings me to the third, and final question I have today: 

Which group am I in?

A few weeks ago, my brother, Justin, asked my daughter, Jadyn (6),  to participate in a High School pageant as his escort for the night. She practiced and worked really hard with the older teenage girls to learn the dances and parts that they would all be performing for the event. As the time of the event grew close, Jadyn was informed that it was a formal event, and that she would need to be in a real formal dress. The older High School aged girls showed her their dresses in a dress rehearsal, which were very beautiful, but very immodest. Jadyn, being young, was in love with the dresses!!

We went to the mall that night and looked in dozens of stores for a dress. Jadyn didn't like any of them. Finally we asked her what she was looking for, and she said she wanted a sleeveless one (and it had to be Elsa blue). We explained to her the standard of our church, and the commandments from the Lord to dress modestly. I think initially she was upset, but she quickly decided to follow the commandments. She was the only girl up there with sleeves on her dress, and she looked amazing. She even proceeded to tell the other older girls about the commandments. I was so proud of her! Jadyn was small, but I will always remember her great faith and desire to do whatever it takes. Jadyn is in Group 3.

Sometimes when we are faced with difficult decisions, it would be really easy to turn and walk away. But before we do this, first, consider this scripture in John 6, where Christ turns to His apostles after witnessing Groups 1 & 2 leave him: 

"Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?" (John 6:67)

It is important for us, as disciples of Christ, to know where we stand. What group are we in?  When things are difficult, will I leave Him? If I don't understand the teachings, will I choose to complain or disagree? Or will I, no matter what he asks of me, choose to follow Him wherever he takes me? 

(I want to be in Group 3. )

A Jot about John

John the Baptist

Matthew 11:1-19, Luke 7:18-35

In Matthew 11:2-3, John the Baptist sends his apostles to go to Jesus Christ. He tells them to ask Him the following question:

"Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?"

Or maybe in other words: John asked us to see if you really are the Christ, or should we just keep looking? This is very confusing to a lot of folks. They wonder: 'did John really second guess the Savior?' However, the question is not as important, as is the reason behind it.

At that time, the apostles clung on very hard to John as a prophet. They were obedient and faithful, but had a hard time letting go of him and attaching to Christ. By John sending them out to Christ to ask this question, it actually gave those men the ability to see for themselves. John the Baptist knew that if they were able to see Him, and witness is divinity, that they would gain a knowledge sufficient to reroute their loyalty. And it did exactly that: Christ performed miracles, taught and gave blessings. He spoke directly to them, with all the wisdom, humility and patience you would expect. Then they left to go find John.

If I had been in their shoes, I would have run straight over to John, and would probably have been freaking out. I can't imagine how they felt, or how they contained themselves! I would first describe to John the feeling that filled my heart when Christ spoke right to me, as he testified of His divine role.  Then I would try to describe the directness, love and the meaning that is hidden within His words. And lastly, I would tell John all about the miracles that I had witnessed: people healed, taught and administered to. I can't imagine how those two apostles felt after being there to witness all of that!

Later on in Matthew 11, after those two apostles left, Christ proceeded to tell the multitudes of people about John. In verse 11, he told them that "Among them that are born of women thee hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist...." Joseph Smith explained this with three reasons:

“First. He was entrusted with a divine mission of preparing the way before the face of the Lord. Whoever had such a trust committed to him before or since? No man.

“Secondly. He was entrusted with the important mission, and it was required at his hands, to baptize the Son of Man. Whoever had the honor of doing that? Whoever had so great a privilege and glory? Whoever led the Son of God into the waters of baptism, and had the privilege of beholding the Holy Ghost descend in the form of a dove, or rather in the sign of the dove, in witness of that administration? The sign of the dove was instituted before the creation of the world, a witness for the Holy Ghost, and the devil cannot come in the sign of a dove. The Holy Ghost is a personage, and is in the form of a personage. It does not confine itself to the form of the dove, but in sign of the dove. The Holy Ghost cannot be transformed into a dove; but the sign of a dove was given to John to signify the truth of the deed, as the dove is an emblem or token of truth and innocence.

“Thirdly. John, at that time, was the only legal administrator in the affairs of the kingdom there was then on the earth, and holding the keys of power. The Jews had to obey his instructions or be damned, by their own law; and Christ Himself fulfilled all righteousness in becoming obedient to the law which He had given to Moses on the mount, and thereby magnified it and made it honorable, instead of destroying it. The son of Zacharias wrested the keys, the kingdom, the power, the glory from the Jews, by the holy anointing and decree of heaven, and these three reasons constitute him the greatest prophet born of a woman."

I talked to my mom, who is a a wealth of knowledge of all things scripture, because I didn't understand what was meant by #3 of Joseph Smith's reasoning. She explained to me that in those days, the Law of Moses was still in affect. The Law of Moses, she said, was initially created by God, but the leaders down the line added their own laws and requirements. Because there was not separation of church and state, John was recognized as someone that they were legally liable to. This, as Joseph Smith and my mom said, was only upheld by the Jews. Now, not only was John the Baptist a legal authority, but he also held the keys to the Aaronic Priesthood for the power of Baptism. Thus, mom explained, John was a legal administer, as well as a spiritual leader. Thank goodness for Moms!

I can see why his apostles were so deeply attached to him! They witnessed him fulfill his callings in life, and saw his great work. They probably loved John for his sacrifices and his faith. And still, John needed to help them to love and respect Jesus as the Christ. 

Finally, in complete humility, John, in verse 30 of chapter 3, says:

"He must increase, and I must decrease"

He knew that his disciples would not stop clinging to him, but he knew that he needed them to follow and have faith in Jesus Christ. And so... he knew that he needed to fall back and let the Savior take the lead.

This is a great example for all of us of perfect humility. Do we let the Savior have the total lead in our lives? Do we allow Him to increase, while we decrease our own will? I think this is a particularly hard thing to do for our generation. It is much easier to trust a Google search, than it is to listen for the quiet whisperings of the Holy Ghost as it so reverently sends us the answers to our questions.

I am grateful for the work of John the Baptist, and for his different callings to prepare the world for the Savior. I am especially grateful for Jesus Christ, and for the feeling that I get in my heart when I read His words. I know that He is my Savior, because I can feel it when I take the time to study.

And thank you mom!