What do you feed your sheep, shepherd?

What they naturally live on.

What is that?

Fresh grass, water from the streams…
These are provided naturally, freely

And to make a well-bodied animal high in muscle?
Food that contains protein
Like a body builder can eat many eggs, which are pure protein, and build bigger muscles.

And do you know the Thoroughbred horse?
He is magnificent but cannot live on grass.
A shaggy pony loves his grass and twigs
A thoroughbred is highly muscled, bred to race
and needs more nutritious food, from oats and the like
Grass is not enough for him
Especially when it’s cold.

In the same way
Our souls will become
What you feed them on.
How do you feed your inner person?
What is at the heart of you?
How do you plead?
What is your highest priority?
How do you feed?

Jesus asked Peter, three times, “Feed my lambs, my sheep”
Jesus is the Shepherd. His sheep know his voice and follow him.
Know his voice.
Seek above all things to know his voice, know him.

Many times our old testament heroes were begged
to spend all their time
studying
learning
thinking on
‘the law’.
For us who are saved by grace,
and in the new era of Emmanuel
Jesus died and rose again and is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us.
He went back to the Father so that He could send (more of himself), the Comforter, the Holy Spirit to teach us more and more.
The Holy spirit watches Jesus and the Father; Jesus watches the Father. Our God is one. He has written His words down and watches it to perform it.

So
Read.
Read read read.
Listen to,
Get teaching on,
Learn,
Study
God’s amazing book.

PRAYER

[As you pray, address yourself sincerely and with all your heart to God, as best you can. Best to say out loud, be still, and see if He says anything back to you, or changes the way you feel.]

Dear Shepherd

I am amazed that you have written a book.

Did you do it by yourself?
Please teach me.

I would like to know all about it.
Please help me find an easy version
To get started.
With pictures.

I love that you write
For us sheep.

We should know all about your book
shouldn't we?
If you wrote it.

I love you Shepherd,

Love
Your lamb.

References (from the Bible)

Joshua 1 verse 3-9
[God is speaking to Joshua, the new leader of the Israelites,
after they had wandered together in the desert for 40 years.
He is about to take a tribe of a million people into a new, Promised country.]

Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.
From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.
No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
Only be strong and very courageous;
be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.
This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Proverbs 14 verse 13 and 30
A happy heart makes the face joyful
but heartache crushes the spirit...
Light in a messenger's eyes
brings joy to the heart
Good news gives health to the bones
[Good news is good for us, for health and happiness]

Proverbs 23 verse 7
What [a person] thinks within himself, so he is.

Matthew 15 verse 11
[Jesus says,]
It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles [makes dirty] the person, but what comes out of the mouth [what they say], that defiles the person.
[What you say is so important.]

John 21 verse 15-18
[Jesus has fed his disciples breakfast, on the shore of Lake Galilee, after his resurrection. Peter had said that he did not even know Jesus, the night that Jesus was arrested. Peter was devastated. Here is how he was restored - or part of that restoration.]

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter,
“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time,
“Do you love me?”
He said,
“Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep..."

[Peter, bound to do as Jesus said,
went on to teach and preach about Jesus and the New Life to many,
so feeding the sheep involves teaching them and setting an example for them to copy.]

Romans 12 verse 2
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Philippians 4 verse 8
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is honourable [noble], whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable [of good reputation] - if anything is admirable [excellent] or worthy of praise - think deeply about such things
[Live in good stories, keep thinking about them, like an inflow of fresh water - it will replaces stale and bad water, remove poisons.]



Bible version - New American Standard Version [with some difficult parts transliterated and commented by me].

How to find things - a book and a Bible

The book that made your world.

Mangalwadi writes that this book, the Bible,
is dynamite.
It has changed the world.
Mangalwadi comes from Eastern culture,
and works in an Indian University.
He sees in the book the principles
which make our world fair and good:

Law and a legal system that is just and fair, relying on more than one witness
Nation state
Science
Human rights.
Children’s rights.
Looking after the poor (widows, orphans
Welcoming strangers, foreigners, immigrants in the land).
Looking out for your neighbour
Economic principles
debt forgiveness every 7 and 50 years
a tenth of income for social welfare
management of social welfare by temple/church
Treating everyone equally

Did you know this saying?
Do as you would be done by.
It is straight from Jesus’s lips, in
Matthew 7 verse 12
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Love your neighbour as yourself
is Jesus's summary of the ancient laws given to the Israelites on stone tablets written on by the finger of God
(Mark 12 verse 30-31 and Exodus 20 verse 1-20)

This and other stories can be found in a really interesting book on the Bible and how it has changed not only the life of the man writing the book, but the whole WORLD.



The Book that Made your World (available on Amazon) by Mangalwadi


For the Christian Bible
- most churches will bring you one, just ask
- ask if you have questions
- the bible is online too in many varieties
like soup.
One app is YouVersion which you can put on your phone or tablet
Another website for finding things in the bible (or reading) is BibleGateway.com

Tags: shepherdlamb, shepherdlambtalk, feedmylambs, mostimportantbook, he-art4reality, soulfood