"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the worlf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep."
When we put our hope in people, we are asking to be let down. But how many hired hands do we have to endure that have abandoned their duty, before it starts reflecting upon the shepherd? How many fleeing hired hands must run away before we start valuing our own stomachs more than what the hired hands tell us to value? It lies upon the shoulders of the hired hands of whether or not the flock stays together.
The thing about shepherds is that they walk ahead of the flock. They do not walk behind the flock. Not pushing them in the direction that they want them to go. They walk ahead of them. Talking to them the whole way. Leading them along. Inviting them to take a walk. Asking them to trust them with where the road takes them. Inevitably the hired hands will worry more about themselves, or think higher of themselves than the rest of the group (which they were assigned to keep safe), and with this comes turmoil to the entire flock.
How are we not to judge the shepherd by the people He hires?
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