by David Erwin for Holiday Community Fellowship Church
In sheep farming, there’s a term called a “bummer lamb.” Sometimes, for reasons no one fully understands, a mother sheep refuses to nurse her newborn and pushes it away from the flock. If the shepherd doesn’t step in, that lamb won’t just die from lack of food — it will die from discouragement, from losing the will to live.
So the shepherd intervenes. He brings the lamb into his own home. He bottle-feeds it, keeps it warm, protects it, and gives it the care and attention it needs to survive and grow strong.
When the lamb is healthy enough, the shepherd returns it to the flock.
Here’s the beautiful part: when the shepherd walks into the field in the morning and calls his sheep, the ones who were once “bummer lambs” recognize his voice immediately. They run straight to him — and the rest of the flock follows their lead.
That’s a powerful picture of God’s love for us when we feel rejected, forgotten, or broken. He is the Good Shepherd. He draws near to the weak, the hurting, and the overlooked. He restores us, strengthens us, and brings us back into community — whole and secure.
As it says in Gospel of John 10:14, Jesus declares:
“I am the Good Shepherd; I know My sheep and My sheep know Me.”
