Jehovah Rohi - Part 2 of 2

When I thought about how to write from the Shepherd's point of view, the aspect of a Shepherd that stood out strongly was his voice. Voices are so distinctly connected to a person. Think of how many voices you could probably identify with no other sense cues. President Obama's voice, radio DJs, your family members. I always try to guess which actor or actress is speaking for the character in an animated movie. Voices can evoke feelings. Think of how you feel when you hear your loved one's voice. Voices are powerful. This is my interpretation of Jesus the Shepherd's point of view. (Thanks for reading, Aunt Rene! You encourage me!)
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My sheep,
I could yell to you,
Or I could whisper.
With sharp commands,
Gentle guidance,
Happy encouragement,
Reprimands.
I could make my voice drown out all other voices.
I could speak over your dreams,
Tell you how I love you,
Teach you with my stores of wisdom,
Amaze you with the supernatural,
The miraculous.

You seem eager to know Me,
Your Shepherd,
But My voice will hold no meaning or strength
Until you accept and know that
This voice belongs to Me.

You know your mother's voice,
You recognize the voice of a predator,
You stop in your tracks at another shepherd's call,
But there is only one voice like mine.

When you allow your heart to know who owns this voice,
That this is the voice of the One who lays down His life for you,
Then

My very breath will calm your trembling heart.

When I speak your name,
Your legs will carry you to my side.

I will not need to yell,
Or repeat myself,
Because you will know Me,
My voice,
Like I know you,
My sheep.

Jehovah Rohi - Part 1 of 2

I want to explore the names of God through writing. Today, I am meditating on Jehovah Rohi, the Lord my Shepherd. For the first installment, I tried to understand this aspect of God from the perspective of the sheep.

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Chomp, munch, chew, chew… swallow
Look up, look back
Chomp, munch, chew, chew… swallow
Look up

Listen

Nothing
Chomp, munch, chew, chew… swallow

If you ask me, there’s no greater life than that of a sheep
Look at me – I’m surrounded on all sides by lush pastures
Each blade of grass beckoning me with a breezy flick of green
I’ve got all the time I need to graze every lovely, delectable patch
Sigh
When I’m full, I head down to the stream for a refreshing drink
And maybe a nap

The only bad part about being a sheep is the constant fear
You never know when a predator will come
Or a storm
Storms are awful
And wet
And scary

We sheep are notorious for getting lost
I guess that’s another downside
One time I got so focused on eating that I ate myself
Right off a cliff
That would’ve been my last mouthful
If a ledge hadn’t been right there to catch me
I wailed and cried out until it got dark
Wouldn’t you know, my Shepherd appeared over the ledge!
He just looked down at me like I was his own child or something
Scooped me up over his shoulders
-which really freaked me out, by the way –
And carried me back to the others
He’d left all of them to find me
Imagine that!

Anyway,
Chomp, munch, chew, chew… swallow
The Shepherd takes us on all these long walks
Big hills, chew… swallow
Rocks and stuff to go around
It’s awful
But I’d never leave him
There’s something about his voice that soothes me
I want to follow him when I hear it
Remember – I get lost, you know
My mama called me a wanderer
But with the Shepherd, I know he’ll always
Keep me with him
His rod and staff are kind of like his voice
They keep me close
So I don’t get away too far
But I’m pretty sure that even if I got away again
Like last time
He’d come for me
He’s my Shepherd, you know
I’m his sheep
We’re supposed to stick together.