Sheep - A Devotion

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

When it comes to my bathroom sink, I have to let the water run for a bit in order for the temperature to transition from cold to hot or hot to cold. This seems like such an unfortunate waste of perfectly good water, but I can’t seem to enjoy drinking a scalding hot liquid to down my twice-daily vitamins. One night while brushing my teeth, it struck me just how easily I take running water for granted. And then I thought about the gift of electricity. Then sleeping in the shelter of my own home. Living in a free country. Having a job. Being healthy. Having mobility. Seeing. Hearing. Feeling. Tasting. Speaking. Thinking. Breathing.

Paul tells us in Thessalonians to “pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks.” Our every breath and step should be a testament to glorify how awesome and merciful our God is that we should even have another day to live on this earth. Regardless of how desolate or distraught our plight may be, we can always find reason to be thankful.

Some people joke about “praying themselves to sleep.” Others suggest counting blessings instead of the fence-hopping, pasture-grazing dream-sheep when you’re hard-pressed to fall asleep. Who would want to dwell on stinky, loud farm animals instead of the immeasurable blessings we receive daily, anyway?

Really, we’re nothing more than stinky sheep ourselves; constantly wandering off,  jumping over fences and constantly getting ourselves stuck in something because we act a fool. But we can rejoice in the fact that we have a shepherd always looking past our stinky sin, and eternally giving us reasons to simply be thankful to be a sheep.