White, fluffy lambs

I'm not a fan of white, fluffy lambs.  Not in the faith community at least.  To me, white, fluffy lambs are deceptive and have lulled too many people into complacency.  Jesus does not call us so we can become white, fluffy lambs. Jesus dalls us to be bold messengers.

The only way a lamb stays white and fluffy is to be coddled.  No sheep that is out in the pasture, out searching for grass to eat, out with the other sheep is going to be white and fluffy for long. They pick up twigs and burrs in their wool which ranges in color from dingy white to gray to brown (depending on where they have wandered and what they have gotten into).

Jesus tells us he is the good shepherd - but not to a bunch of white, fluffy lambs.  They don't need a good shepherd.  They are white because they are not in danger, they are not out in the world among their fellow sheep, they are not seeking nourishment and shelter.  White, fluffy lambs do not live the lives of ordinary sheep.

Like us.  We are ordinary sheep....and thanks be to God.  Jesus came and lived among us, the ordinary people in a difficult and dangerous world.  We are the people who wander off into all kinds of brambles; we are the ones who fall into ditches and get covered in mud.  We are the sheep who get so self-absorbed that we lose track of time and space and need someone to come and find us.  If anyone needs a shepherd, it's the ordinary, thick headed, mostly inattentive, not very smart, covered in dirt sheep just like you and me.

We are called to follow where Jesus led - out into the world.  While we are out there Jesus had a message he'd like us to share with the others....no matter how difficult and dangetous this world  proves to be, we  have THE good shepherd and more importantly  he has us.