Have you gone astray?

"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid upon Him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:6

Do you let God's Word illuminate in your heart?

Do you have God's Word written upon your heart?

"Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart." II Corinthians 3:3

We all as sheep have gone astray.

We have a tendency to be stubborn and insist going at our own way at times.

When we go our own way we generally get ourselves into a rut.

That rut will inevitably get worse.

The rut will get deeper, and deeper, and our commitment will be established solidly to the point where we can not take another step.

We are so determined to find our own way, that we are willing to risk personal destruction.

Think for a moment as if you were wandering on a desolate path.

This path is stoney, rough and rocky.

You are so tired that you can not put one foot in front of the other.

You wish that someone was there.

There is no one.

The air becomes heavy, but you still keep plugging away.

You stop for a moment, taking a deep breath.

While stopped, you wish that just for a moment you could break away from all the circumstances that surround you.

Even the thought of breaking away becomes overwhelming.

You are willing to think that it is much easier to continue where you are, and with the way you have always done things.

You continue on the path.

Your stomach begins to knot, your whole body aches, and you have anxiety about your situation.

You think that there is no hope.

You think that there is no way out.

You think that there is no way out of this endless rut.

[Boy are you wrong!]

You keep on the path, struggling with wounded feet, heart, spirit.

Stumbling and struggling all the time frustrated.

Having a hard time as you try to stay on the path.

Suddenly......Suddenly.....

You hear a voice.

You keep on walking, struggling as before.

Then again, you hear that small voice.

This time you stop and wait, to see what the voice is saying.

You hear it again.

The small voice is warm and loving.

The voice it is calling your name.

He calls your name again.

You can hear the name.

He wants you to respond.

You turn around to see who the small voice is coming from, you see it is the Good Shepherd, Jesus.

What do you do now?

Do you turn and keep walking on your path for fear of rejection?

Do you keep walking out your path because you are afraid of disapproval?

What do you do?

He calls your name again.

He is waiting patiently.

As you look back this time you see forgiveness in His eyes.

His eyes are filled with Love and compassion.

There is great joy in His eyes.

In a split moment, He is walking towards you.

You are struck with awe as He moves towards you.

He comes and stands right in front of you.

He looks into your eyes and your heart just melts.

He gently takes your chin with one hand, with the other He is ever so gently wiping the tears, and sweat from your face.

Suddenly He kneels down.

He begins to wipe the wounds on your feet.

You hope that He never leaves.

":For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Hebrews 13:5b

It is a hope beyond all hopes.

"[Now] we have this [hope] as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul [it cannot slip and it cannot break down under whatever steps out upon it - a hope] that reaches farther and enters into [the very certainty of the Presence] within the veil." Hebrews 6:19 Amplified Bible

The Father picks you up and carries you close to His heart.

He then tells you how valuable you are to Him.

He tells you of your value to Him even though you have gone astray.

He tells you that He has come to restore your soul.

He carries you back to the fold.

He has come after you.

He has left everything to bring you home.

He has left the others just to come after you and bring you back home safely.

His love for you is great.

Let Him continue carrying you.

Let His will and purpose be the will of your life.

How great that He did not leave you on that path to destruction, but He came and brought you back home.

How we need to rejoice for what God has done in our lives.

Thank Him for touching your life.

Thank Him for not leaving in the wilderness.

Thank Him for delivering you out of the ruts that you made on your own.

"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing.

Know ye that the Lord He is God: it is He that made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with Thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations." Psalm 100