The Grass is greener on the other side...

"all we like sheep have gone astray"...really? Why in the world would we wander away from the safety of the shepherd and the security of the flock? We know that we are safer, right? It is an amazing thing that we are a dumb as sheep! If you have spent any time at all around one of these wool covered animals you know that God showed us little flattery in calling us His sheep. Sheep are very stubborn, often going their own way until a shepherd's staff lands squarely on his head. You can not reason with a sheep and explain to her why she is better off over here in this pasture, often times the only time she will look for her shepherd is when she is in danger. It is then that she will come running to the shepherd. Sound familiar?

So why do we wander? We sing it regularly in the hymn 'prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love". Why? I would argue that there is two main reasons and that both are driven by our sin of selfishness. In one case we will wander because the grass looks greener on the other side and in the other we are divided from the fold by strife. We have already talked about how Satan loves to divide us, so lets take a little time looking at this idea about the grass being greener.

The first step that we have to take is to say that it is okay to feel this way. The grass may really be greener on the other side. We may be in a pasture that has dried up to almost nothing and just over there on the other side is a lush pasture full of green plants. We were never promised the best pastures...on this side of eternity. So why does God lead us through the valley's, mountains, deserts, droughts, blizzards, you get the point. Why not just stick us in a green pasture all the time. Have you ever seen a green field that sheep have been allowed to graze on for long periods of time? There is not much green about it. The good shepherd understands that he must move his sheep. Maybe the shepherd knows that a hard winter is coming and that it would be in the flocks best interest to leave that field for later. Maybe their is a wolf hiding in the tall grass. We are right where we are supposed to be when we are following our shepherd no matter what the field on the other side looks like.

Is 11:6-9
6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.
9 They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.

There is a promise that one day someday we will see the greenest of greens and we will not fear the wolf. Isaiah is full of passages that talk about what that day will be like. We will still be sheep and we will still have a respectful fear of the Lion, Jesus, who will destroy once and for all both the enemy and our selfishness. Hasten that day!