The Shepherd

I mention Awana often.  And how we help in Cubbies.  It all probably sounds kind of. . .cute.  Like it's some kind of program we are kind-hearted enough to serve in to keep the kids entertained with something wholesome. 

But it's not "cute."  It is a really, really big deal for our kids and for us as parents and, increasingly, for us as a married couple.

We take it seriously.  We really believe we are entrusted with these pre-schoolers and we really believe that what we teach them on Sunday afternoon has the potential to grow into something big and important in their lives. 


So.

This past Sunday, the story-time was about the verse, 'The Lord is my shepherd. . ."  Possibly one of the most famous verses ever.  Top 10, at least. 

I wanted to teach the kids a little bit about what a shepherd does for his sheep.  This is something people of Bible times knew very well.  But nowadays. . .

A book was written years ago titled something like A Shepherd's Reading of Psalm 23 in which the shepherd-author described his relationship to his flock.

I boiled this down for the kids.

I took one volunteer at a time to come to the middle of the circle and pretend to be my sheep as I stood with a scarf banded on my head and a tall bamboo pole as my crook.

A shepherd leads a sheep to green pasture.  (The first girl crawled to an area and pretended to eat.)

A shepherd protects a sheep from raging water and leads him to quiet waters where he can drink.  (The second kid--well, you get the point.)

A shepherd uses his staff to lead the sheep gently.  (Third kid. . .)

Here's where I decided to get clever:

A shepherd also uses his staff as a rod, because sometimes the sheep need to be whacked to be sufficiently deterred from danger.  The Lord disciplines.  We don't like to think about it.  We don't like to say that out loud.  But it's true.  The Lord uses a rod, sometimes.  As when we don't respond to the gentle leading.

The fourth kid --  No, not really.  I didn't strike any children with my rod.  I told them about it, though. 

Finally, the shepherd restores a sheep when, because of its massive wool, it falls over.  The sheep cannot right itself back to hooves.  The shepherd must pick it up and make it to stand again.  e.g. The Lord restores my soul.

It was fun acting that one out with little Roman who lay on his back with arms and legs in the air, wondering where this was going.

And then review.  We're all sheep.  What does the Good Shepherd do for us?  They all seemed to know the answers.  This was satisfying. 

One day, when they are older than 3 or 4 or 5 and know a little something about what it means to fall and be helpless to help themselves, maybe they will remember that the Shepherd wants to and has the powers to restore them to their feet.

See?  I take this story-time seriously.  I really want it to count for eternity.

***

Much later:


Over dinner, I asked Josh, "What's one thing a shepherd does?"

Joshua answered, "He uses his staff to beat the sheep."