Jehovah Rohi- God of the lost

 How many times can I possibly mess up, or fall into the same temptations and sin as I did before. How many time can i lose myself in this “walk” before God gives up on me?… Okay fine, I know the Word say He will never give up on me, but at what point is enough enough? Does God ever get so frustrated with us making the same dumb mistakes over and over?… I’ve sat and pondered this many times and its one of the reasons why I haven’t written in so long. I have strayed for a while and I was lost on my walk for a little time. I wondered that since i wasn’t the same “surrendered Christian” that I was back when I was posting, would I not have the right dose of “anointing” to get the point across? I have since been reminded of what I’ve known for a while now. I pray that God forgives me for my period of doubt and that He fills me with His spirit until it overflows.

Its been a while since I’ve written, but what God has been laying on my heart lately is a particular name. Our God has a name a lot of us may not be aware of… That name is Jehovah Rohi, which translates as Shepherd or God of the Lost! Throughout the Gospels and all through scripture we see stories of people who at some point strayed or got lost, only to be found, restored and promoted to a deeper knowing of God, which results in greater joy, peace and love which are all fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).

Whether it be the story of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), the parable of the lost sheep (Matthew 18:12-14) or the lost coin (Luke 15), the Word over and over assures us that when we are lost, if we seek Him, He will find us! He will not be mad or “curse” us for not being perfect. The blood that His son shed on Calvary cleanses us of not only our past sins, but our present and future sins as well. Our unconditionally loving Father in Heaven is waiting with open arms to accept us back. In the Gospel of Luke Jesus is telling parables about the lost being found, He says, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent (Luke 12:7). I mean how much more clearer of an example you can find of unconditional love?

Psalm 23 is one of the better known pieces of scripture in both religious and secular circles. It has becomes so popular because it tends to be an area of scripture people recite or meditate on when in deep struggle, or in a situation of grave fear. The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want (He provides all our needs)…. Wow, how much clearer can this be!… He lays me in green pasture (comfort) and leads me besides quiet waters (peace), He restores my soul (rest) He guides me in paths of righteousness (leads us) for His names sake … What an amazing God He is and that is why He is The Shepherd, our Shepherd. To understand the role of a Shepherd we first have to understand the mind of the sheep.

The truth is that sheep are rather dumb animals, not because they are unintelligent, but sheep are this way because they have such a strong herd instinct, which is stronger than their reasoning and intelligence. If one sheep goes over a cliff, the whole herd will go over the cliff as well. Do you know that is literally true? Or do you know that if we took a pile of food over here, and if the lead sheep did not eat from that pile of food, all the other sheep would die of starvation even if they were in the same immediate area. Its not that sheep are just stupid, their herd instinct is stronger than their intelligence. Likewise, we as human beings often suffer when our herd instinct becomes stronger than our intelligence. We too follow the leader. We too can get caught up following the crowd and getting led away from the right path, which inevitably ends up taking us away from the Word and what we know to be right. This is why it is so important that we look to GOD for our direction, not our friends, not our family and I will even go as far as saying, not even our pastors. Remember people, we are all human and Gods word says we all fall short (Romans 3:23). The only one who walked this Earth and did it perfectly was Jesus Christ Himself, and He is to be our example of Christianity as a whole! Jesus would never neglect someone because they make the same mistake over and over or have trouble with a certain vice or habit. Jesus would never discriminate for color, race or creed and He was the LAST, not first to pass judgment and this is how I believe He would want us to be today. You see the average “religious” person considers the lost to be the people in the street, on drugs, maybe in the clubs and bars…. but i believe that there too are many “lost people” inside the church walls as well and this is why we need to look for our Shepherd as our example. I love how John 3:16-19 reads in The Message Translation:

John 3:16-18 (The Message)- “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

….You see, if the Shepherd was not there at all times to lead, instruct, provide care for and to keep the flock safe, the sheep would easily be susceptible to the wolves and other hazards during their “walk”. As humans, if we don’t maintain a strong focus on our Shepherd, reallying and trusting in His provisions and His lead, then we are fair game for the “wolves” in this world that are here to seek, kill and destroy us (John 10:10). If our focus isn’t on the Word, then its on the world, which will inevitably lead us off the narrow path and onto the wide road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13).

I know one thing…. My God PROMISES, not suggests or recommends, but PROMISES that those who trust in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. So you see, we all end up in the same place, Heaven with our Heavenly Father. The path there isn’t easy and may not necessarily be completely straight, but while we are in the care of our great and almighty Shepherd, when we get lost or stray off the path, He is not only waiting, but He is diligently looking for us.

What we can rest on is this……

Romans 8:35-39 (NLT): Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Be Salt, Be Light….. Spread Truth!!!

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