I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
The Good Shepherd
"He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart ... "
Isaiah 40:11 NIV
This verse is one of the most tender portraits of God in all of Scripture. Amid a chapter that speaks of God’s overwhelming power—the same God who measures oceans in the palm of His hand and calls stars by their name—Isaiah also gives us this stunning picture of His gentleness.
God is not just mighty; He is merciful. He is not only strong; He is tender.
In this verse, Isaiah compares our God to a shepherd who cares daily for a flock of sheep. We, like sheep, have a tendency to wander and go astray. Sheep fall into traps or are killed and eaten by predators. But a shepherd's only priority is the care and safety of his flock. A shepherd must be strong enough to carry a wounded ewe or to ward off wolves from a stranded lamb, but caring enough to nurture them and lead them to green pastures.
Centuries later, Jesus would stand among the people of Israel and say, “I am the good shepherd.” In doing so, Jesus connected Himself directly to the heart of Isaiah’s prophecy. The care, compassion, and closeness described in Isaiah 40:11 finds its fulfillment in Christ.
Jesus doesn’t keep His distance. He gathers us, carries us, and draws near to us. In our weakness, He lifts us up. In our confusion, He leads. When we’re overwhelmed, He doesn’t demand more than we can give. He walks with us gently, personally, and with deep affection.
This is who our Shepherd is. Powerful enough to rule the universe, yet loving enough to carry us close to His heart.
The Mission of God
All of our lives are spent on something.
Most people spend their days focused on growing a family, building a career, or amassing possessions. While none of those things are necessarily wrong, they can become distractions from our ultimate goal in life.
In the book of Acts, we see Paul’s transformation in Christ. As a result of meeting Jesus and being changed by His grace, Paul spends the rest of his life preaching the good news of Jesus.
For Paul, God’s grace and salvation were so great that nothing on this earth could compare to doing His work.
Paul said that nothing in his life mattered as much as telling others about God’s grace. His goal in life was to finish his own race well by faithfully accomplishing as much of the mission of God as possible:
"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace."
Acts 20:24 NIV
The mission of ...
