Stupid Sheep

This past Sunday I was bemoaning to a friend how upset I was with myself for falling into the same pattern of sinful and hurtful actions, causing pain to myself and others in a way that should not have been necessary. My friend, a dear and godly lady, responded, “That’s why we need our Shepherd—we’re just sheep and we need our Shepherd!” She then went on to say how sheep will actually return to the same path and wear it down until there is literally nothing left, much like what I felt like I’ve been doing lately. I somewhat wryly replied, “Yeah, we’re stupid sheep, that’s for sure.”

We laughed about it at the time, but I started thinking later about how true that silly statement actually is. I really am stupid sometimes. I’m like a stupid sheep, turning off the path over and over again and wearing that wrong path down until it’s only dirt and rocks instead of grass. You would think I would learn the first time, but I do it repeatedly. My vision is so incredibly short-sighted, I can’t remember the lessons I’ve already tried to learn, so I must repeat the mistaken cycle all over again.

Sometimes I wonder, “Is it just me?” But then I remind myself that it’s not just me—it’s humanity. It’s the way we are. “All we like sheep have gone astray.” There’s a reason the Bible refers to us as sheep so many times. We need a Shepherd. Without our Shepherd’s guidance, we will continually go astray, our silly, blind sheep’s eyes telling us that the worn down path over there is so much better than the green, smooth path right here in front of us. But is it? Will that other path really lead us somewhere easier or somehow better? Of course not. We have to return to the true and right path, but the only way to do that is through our Shepherd’s guidance.

So when I reach this point—when I realize that I’ve made the same mistakes all over again and fallen into the same hurtful situation—what should I do? I must flee to my Shepherd. Only through Christ’s forgiveness and guidance will I find my way back onto the path, and only through His tender mercies will I find comfort in the time of pain it takes me to get back onto the path. I am a stupid sheep, but praise be to God that I have a compassionate and merciful Shepherd.