Philippians 4:6 ‘Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and
supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and
the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.’ NKJV. I
remember reading this verse of scripture earlier this year and it was as if a
light bulb lit up in my head. ‘So why have I been anxious all these years?’ I thought 'if my life is in alignment with God’s will and I have thanked God genuinely
from my heart and made my request known to him I need to trust that God is in
control'. Before then, I had spent time with God and
prayed all night about some issues but I was still anxious about some things
after all the prayers. Aren’t we all like this? When we have bills to pay and
don’t know where the money will come from, when we have unmet targets and the
deadline is coming soon, unmet expectations, for women feeling we are
not pretty enough or slim enough, for the single ladies feeling their time is
running out and they are not getting any younger, we are even very anxious
about the minutest things. I have a friend who is so obsessed about the
cellulite on her skin and her big tummy but her tummy is quite flat and I have
never seen a cellulite on her body, we must have that designer shoe and bag, we
must dress to kill for that party, our Instagram photos must be picture perfect
no blemishes, we worry about not having a job or been stuck in one for ages, we
compare and contrast ourselves to others ‘oh see my mate she or he is doing so
and so and I am just here’ and the list is endless.
Matt 11; 28-30 8 “Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Then come to me. I will
refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn my ways and you’ll discover that I’m
gentle, humble, and easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in me for all that I require of you will be
pleasant and easy to bear” TPT. The
Oxford English dictionary describes anxious as a feeling of
worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome. We
worry so much and carry such a heavy burden that we are not meant to be
carrying. God never designed our lives this way, the pressures of society and
projecting ourselves in a certain way, and the insecurities it brings is not
God’s plan and purpose for anyone of us.
God intended for us to be like sheep because
he is our Shepherd. John 10; 11-18 The Good shepherd lays down his life for the
sheep. Sheep are always with a shepherd, and the shepherd never leaves the sheep
alone. The shepherd knows all his sheep by name, he has a personal relationship
with each of them that is why when one of them gets lost he knows and
would go and look for that lost sheep. An
anxious sheep would be out of place in the flock, sheep are not anxious because
when they hear their master’s voice they just follow him. The sheep is calm, it
does not fret, Psalm 23; 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the
still waters. Sheep are fond of moving around so
it’s not their forte to lie down they only spend about 15% of their time
sleeping, but the shepherd helps the sheep to relax and find some calmness in
their souls. We need to allow God to take us to a place of complete calmness
and rest in him.
Sheep’s natural defence is not to fight but
to flee, they are the only animals that cannot defend themselves, they have no
fighting skills. The shepherd of the sheep has a rod which he uses to fight the
enemies of the sheep and the staff to guide the sheep. As sheep we cannot do
anything in our own strength all the strength we need to fight comes from God.
When sheep produces wool it is used by the
shepherd, the more wool is shaved off the sheep’s body the more wool it
produces. Wool is used for so many things such as clothing, socks, carpets,
furniture etc. Our gifts, talent and calling is for the shepherds use to serve
humanity and not for us to keep to ourselves, the more we produce wool and give
to God the more we keep producing. Imagine a sheep that is stubborn and refuses
to let the shepherd shave off its wool, that sheep will never be productive or
fruitful because the wool will remain on the same level forever. Same thing
with us if we don’t use our talents for what God intends for us to use them for
we will not be fruitful and will never find true fulfilment in life.
Sheep eat fresh grains and of good quality.
As sheep we are to eat the word of God daily, which is our daily bread. We are
to lie down in green pastures which is resting daily in the word of God. If we
do this effectively every day we will not be anxious or burdened by life’s
daily struggles. We will hear the master’s voice clearly when he speaks to us and
not the voice of strangers and make the right decisions always.
Sheep do not complain when they are about to
be sacrificed, they don’t go around screaming ‘oh no! I am about to be
slaughtered’. Sheep remain calm and still even in the face of adversity because
they know the shepherd is always watching over them even in the face of death.
Comments
Post a Comment