A shepherd’s job is to make sure their flock has enough food and water, somewhere safe to sleep at night, and protect them from animals that might hurt them.
Cecil the sheep is lucky that his shepherd is good at his job.
Jesus also told a story about sheep to help us know that He will do anything for us.
Suppose someone among you had one hundred sheep and lost one of them. Wouldn’t he leave the other ninety-nine in the pasture and search for the lost one until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he is thrilled and places it on his shoulders. 6 When he arrives home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Celebrate with me because I’ve found my lost sheep.’ 7 In the same way, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who changes both heart and life than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to change their hearts and lives.”
(Luke 15:4-7)
We are lucky that Jesus, our shepherd, is good at His job too!
Jesus is just like Cecil’s shepherd in the story. Even though Jesus has a lot more than 100 sheep people in his ‘flock’ to look after, he knows if our name is Terry, Bronwyn or … Cecil. He knows and loves us.
Cecil was lucky that his shepherd stayed with his flock all day and night to keep him and his friends safe. Jesus is the same. He is always with us.
A shepherd looks after their sheep so well that they never lose any – not one! But sometimes one sheep might wander. We’re a bit the same. Sometimes we want to go on an adventure and wander off. We find ourselves stuck and alone, far away from Jesus our shepherd.
A shepherd will look … and look … and look until he finds the one sheep that is missing! Jesus is the same. If you shout for help – just like Cecil – Jesus won’t be angry or punish you because you wandered off. Nup! Jesus will come looking for you … tracking you down to save you. He will be so excited that he has found you he won’t be able to wait to throw a huge party in heaven to celebrate!
Wow! Jesus is the best shepherd there is! So how do you join his flock?
You don’t need to know everything about God before you start following Jesus. What is helpful is if you talk to God.
- Thank God that your relationship with Him can be fixed because of Jesus. He went through a whole lot so that you can have eternal life.
- Be honest. Tell God that you have made mistakes which have kept you far from him. Tell him that you’re sorry.
- Ask God to help you change to be more like Jesus – to love God and love others.
Tell someone else
Tell someone else. It’s a great idea to tell someone that you’ve decided to follow Jesus. Why?
- They will want to celebrate with you, just like the shepherd in the story.
- They can help you as you begin your amazing adventure.
- You could tell your parents, your camp leader, someone from your church or kids club or your Christian Pastoral Support Worker or chaplain at school.
Join a church or kids club near you
Join a church or kids club near you. If you’re following someone you have to know where they are going. To find out where Jesus is going why not spend time with people who are already following Him?
- If you want to know Jesus it’s useful to spend time with people who can tell you a bit about Him.
- The Bible describes the Church as “the body of Christ. Right at the heart of the gospel (the good news about God’s kingdom) is an invitation to join the family of God. When you are adopted into His family and you get lots of extra brothers and sisters to love and help you.
- One of the main ways in which God will love you, care for you and build you up is through others in the church.
Find a Bible
Find a Bible. It’s God’s story of how he rescued a broken world – and our rescuer is Jesus.
The Bible isn’t a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It’s an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It’s a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne–everything–to rescues the ones he loves. It’s like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!
Sally Lloyd-Jones’ The Jesus Storybook Bible
Talk to God
Talk to God. Have a conversation with God – talk and listen. You learn a lot about someone by talking to them.
Tell yourself
Tell yourself. It might seem a bit silly, but writing a letter or drawing a picture about why you decided to follow Jesus and how you feel at this moment can help you if you ever feel lost again.
Join God in his work
Join God in his work. When you’re an apprentice you follow your boss around, learning on the job. Share life with people who follow Jesus. Read God’s Story of restoration. Talk with God, and listen to him. And as you become an apprentice of Jesus put what you learn into practice.
Still not sure and want to talk to someone?
Get in touch with us and we’ll do our best to help.
If you are at school you might find it helpful to talk to your Christian Pastoral Support Worker or chaplain.