They say confession is good for the soul, and I have a confession I simply must make to you all today, and especially to my wife.  This is hard to admit, but I must confess that the best years of my life were spent in the arms of another man's wife.  Those years were absolutely wonderful, and I loved her so much.  Fortunately, that other man was my father!  My dear mother, Martha Tasler, went to be with the Lord six years ago, and we, her five children, now all greying and retiring, often comment to each other how much we still miss her.  Memories of a loving mother are a powerful thing, such great blessings from God.

          Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms, Grandmas and Great Grandmas.  We love you all, and we appreciate the sacrifices you make in loving and raising your children.  You are a true blessing from God, perhaps the best He gives us on earth.

          Today is also Good Shepherd - a truly rare combination.  Good Shepherd Sunday is always the fourth Sunday after Easter, so these two coincide only when Easter is as late as it was this year.  There's talk of making Easter a standard Sunday - perhaps the second Sunday in April - and many would welcome that.  The Christian church would have to determine that date, and if a majority could agree on a date, it would be a miracle, ranking right up there with the raising of Lazarus.

          Yet I suspect that after so many centuries of having Easter occur on a flexible date (the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox), such a change would probably give rise to Easter being observed on several Sundays, depending on the church body.  I brought up this question in last week's Epiphany E-mail Update and judging from the responses so far, no one wants it changed.  By the way, placing such a volatile question inside a regular weekly message is a good way to find out how many actually read it.  Thank you, those who did!

          What a beloved and familiar passage is Psalm 23!  People of all ages and walks of life know it by heart.  Even some unbelievers know it, this universal metaphor of God's love for His people.  Jesus is the Good Shepherd who is willing to lay down His life for the sheep.  He is the Shepherd in charge, caring for the needs of His sheep, and usually does it through His appointed "under-shepherds".

          When we think of under-shepherds, we usually think of pastors, for the name itself, "pastor", is the Latin term for shepherd.  But there are many more under-shepherds than those ordained.  Parents, especially mothers, shepherd their children through life.  They love and care for their needs, and try to guide them on the right paths.  They are willing to give up so much of their personal life, sometimes even life itself, for the sake of their children.

          Let's open our Bibles and carefully examine Psalm 23, and as we do, I pray it will help us understand more clearly the great love God has for us through His Son Jesus, our Good Shepherd, the One who has sacrificed His own life for the sake of His lambs and sheep.

          "The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul."  Few people in urban areas have had contact with sheep, but we're all familiar to some extent with the images here.  Sheep are not noted for their intelligence, yet they're very useful for food, clothing and even shelter in some cultures.

          Sheep need guidance and direction as they live or they'll be picked off by predators.  If they wander off, they can fall into a ditch, get killed or starve to death.  If they can't find water and grass right away, they will just lay down and die.  In fact, from my experience with sheep, even when they have water and grass, they'll often still lay down and die.

          When Jesus is our Good Shepherd, we have all we need for life.  We may want more, but so long as He's our Shepherd, we don't really need more.  We people truly do need His guidance and direction or we'll get picked off by all manner of predators around us.  Predators come to us disguised as pleasure, prosperity and power, but inwardly they can be wolves.  But when we trust that Jesus is our Good Shepherd and depend on Him, we are safe.  We may get bitten here and there, but we'll never die eternally.  Trust in Him for all that's lasting, and we're promised joy and peace here, and a life without fears or tears that never ends.  We have His Word on it!

          "He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake."  A shepherd walks in front of the flock, guiding it to green pastures and still waters.  A skilled shepherd knows where the good pastures and watering holes are.  He makes sure the sheep have what they need, and guides them on the right path.

          Some under-shepherds think their job is only to walk behind the sheep and hope they don't get lost.  They think every lamb is able find its own way.  Yet anyone who thinks that way knows nothing about sheep or people.  Left to our own resources, sheep will take the wrong path.  They'll think the dry gulch is best and the wolf is a friend.  Without someone to guide us, we'll follow our own trail in life, no matter how dangerous it may be.

          A skilled shepherd, however, walks in front of his sheep.  They see his feet and follow him as they graze.  They know the shepherd's voice and follow him because they trust him.  The shepherd keeps the strays in line, and occasionally leaves the flock to find the lost ones.  At night he herds them into the sheep fold and lays down in front of the gate to protect them.  Always he cares for his sheep, and often he brings others into the flock so none will be lost.

          "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;  your rod and your staff, they comfort me."  The shepherd's staff has many uses.  It has a crook on it to guide the strays, reaching out to catch the lamb before it falls off a cliff.  It's the walking stick he leans on during the journey.  His staff comforts the sheep because they know he will use it gently and wisely.

          The rod, however, is the shepherd's club of authority.  If anything threatens the flock, he uses the rod to defend and protect.  A good shepherd will never use his rod to hurt the sheep, only to hurt the enemy.  Some of today's zealous pastoral under-shepherds mistakenly club their sheep, thinking it will help them.  The shepherd's rod and staff are there for comfort, not control.

          "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil;  my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."  In a shift of word pictures now we visualize a banquet given to honor a beloved someone, sort of a godly Mother's Day luncheon.  How many of you are giving your Mom a special lunch today?  And if you're serving her lunch at home, who will clean up afterwards?

          This banquet is the blessing God gives His people in the face of the opposition.  He honors us and shows our enemies what they're missing.  He gives us oil to soften skin dried and hardened from the journey, and He fills our cup of refreshment so full it spills over.  The Good Shepherd sees to the needs of His entire flock, and so we have everything we need.

          The house of the Lord is life with God forever, in His domain and dimension where pain and sadness are no more, where we are not limited by time or space.  So long as we live on earth, His everlasting arms hold us up, and when we die, we'll be with God Himself forever.

          Let me tell you a personal story.  "We'll be coming out by train in December," they wrote.  Mom and Dad were actually coming to Indiana to visit me in college!  It was 1966 and though I'd attended a college much closer, now they were travelling 700 miles by train to Ft. Wayne.  Besides when she emigrated to America, this would be Mom's longest journey from home.

          When they came I showed them around Concordia Sr. College where I was completing my degree.  Mom asked about the Christmas concert because that's really why they'd come.  Our college choir was singing a new translation of Hugo Distler's "Christmas Story" and I would be the narrator, singing some 15-20 minutes of unaccompanied solos between choral numbers.  Mom was so thrilled I was singing this musical treasure from her native land.

          It was a wonderful visit and on the way back to the station Dad told me the rest of the story.  It seems they'd had a great corn crop that fall, but also lot of wind that blew down the stalks and left tons of earcorn on the ground.  Mom and her daughter-in-law decided it was too much to waste, so they walked the rows, picking up each fallen ear they found.  After two back-breaking weeks of labor they'd picked up enough to fill two cornwagons and sold it.  Mom's cornwagon bought their train tickets.  All that work just to hear me sing.  And all this when she was sixty-six years old.

          Each of us has a memory of parental sacrifice.  Thank God for our mothers, God's under-shepherds.  Thank God for all those placed over us for guidance.  Especially, let's thank the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us sheep.  He loves us and knows what we need, especially forgiveness and faith.  If you're struggling with faith, let the Good Shepherd lead you.  If you're struggling with forgiveness, let go and let God deal with it.  Then, "Surely goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives, and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."  Amen

Copyright © 2000 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.