What do we know about sheep?…  What do they eat? 

Why do people keep sheep? What do we get out of it? … 

(wool, meat, milk/cheese…) 

(can live in places where it’s hard to grow crops; can move around) 

Do people usually have one sheep, or a lot of sheep? … 

(usually keep a flock of sheep; they’re social and like to be in a group) 

What does a shepherd do? 

(Follow a flock around, keep them safe) 

What kinds of things could be dangerous for sheep? 

(Predators, thieves, rough terrain, bad weather, getting lost, …) 

… Do you remember that Jesus tells a story about a shepherd who has a lost sheep, and goes out into the wilderness and looks and looks until she finds it and brings it home? 

The Psalm mentioned some of the tools that shepherds use: a rod and a staff. 

I’ve known this psalm for forty-some years and I always just sort of vaguely thought the rod and the staff were the same thing and the psalm was just being repetitive (like with the two donkeys). 

But I did a little research this year and it turns out that in the part of the world the Bible comes from, shepherds might carry two things. 

The rod would look a little like a wooden baseball bat, but shorter. It’s more of a weapon than a tool. You use that if you need to whack a wolf on the head. 

People could learn to throw them really well, too, to drive a predator away. 

Who remembers the story about David and Goliath from Drama Camp a couple of years ago? … 

In that story, David, who later becomes a king, was still a teenager. He had big brothers who were soldiers, but he was a shepherd. He was taking care of his father’s sheep, while his brothers went off to fight their people’s enemies.

The enemies had a warrior named Goliath, who was a GIANT man. Everybody was too afraid to attack him.

David came to visit his brothers and bring them food, and he saw Goliath, and he said: I’ve killed lions and bears, to protect my sheep. I can take this guy down. 

What did he use to do it?… 

A slingshot and some rocks!

Being a shepherd is probably pretty boring a lot of the time, and I think David spent his time on target practice!… 

Shepherds would also carry a staff – usually a tall, strong stick with a crook at the top, like this. Shepherds use the staff to guide the sheep. They can press it against their side to get them to move in a particular direction. 

I looked up some videos of shepherds using these tools. I saw a woman use her staff to move some older sheep out of the way so that a young sheep, a lamb, could reach the good food.

And the crook part is good if you need to catch a particular sheep that’s wandering off, or falling into the pond, or it needs some attention. I saw a video where a shepherd used his shepherd’s crook to catch a sheep that was limping, so he could put some medicine on its hurt foot. 

It’s a big responsibility to be a shepherd! You’re trying to keep the sheep healthy, and together, and safe from predators or thieves, and help them find good food and water. It sounds like a big job! 

I think that’s why that psalm about God being a good shepherd can be so soothing to listen to. It’s nice to think about always being protected, and led in the right way, and having what you need. 

Okay, don’t forget about sheep and shepherds, but I’m going to talk about something else for a minute.

Starting this Friday, I’m going on a sabbatical.

That’s a big, strange word – who’s heard it before?…  

A sabbatical means somebody is taking a break from their job, usually a couple of months or longer, with the purpose of rest, study, travel, or personal growth. Usually the person still gets paid for their regular job, and they come back to it at the end of the sabbatical. 

It’s most common for clergy – people like me who lead religious congregations – or people who work at universities, to get sabbaticals. But some other kinds of jobs can have them too. It’s a good idea; I wish more people had them! 

What will I be doing? I’ll take a couple of little family trips. I’ll make stuff in my studio. I’ll go for walks on the prairie. I’ll look for cool rocks. I’ll read some stuff. I’ll work in our garden. I’ll spend a little more time with my family. I might do some low-key projects around the house. Mostly, I’ll have time for things I always wish I had more time for. 

And then, on the first Sunday in July, I’ll be back here. 

IN PERSON: While I’m away, my friend Andy is going to be here on Sunday mornings most of the time. Andy was the priest at another church in town, but he retired last year. He’s kind and friendly. He likes music, and making stuff with wood, and he likes kids. I think you’re all going to get along just fine. 

When you become a priest, there’s a special church service called an ordination. I was ordained in February of 2009, at the church in New Hampshire where I was working then. We read the Gospel story where the risen Jesus tells his friend Peter: Feed my sheep. Tend my lambs.

My friend Lisa preached the sermon for that service. 

In her sermon, she told me that some people might think that being ordained makes you go from being a sheep to a shepherd. 

Like, the people of the church are the sheep, and now I’m in charge of leading them and feeding them and taking care of them, so that makes me the shepherd, right?  

Sometimes priests talk about their congregation as their flock.

And the word pastor actually means shepherd! 

And how about this staff – does this shape look familiar to anybody? … 

Bishops carry a staff this shape, to remind them of their responsibility to tend the flock. 

But! In her sermon, Lisa reminded me: I’m not the shepherd. 

Jesus tells Peter, Feed MY sheep. Tend MY lambs.

In the Psalm we read today, God is our shepherd.

In our Gospel story, Jesus is our good shepherd. 

In an ordination sermon, sometimes the preacher will give what’s called a charge. They’ll speak directly to the person who’s going to be ordained and kind of give them some marching orders. 

In her sermon, Lisa basically told me that I should always remember that I’m still a sheep.

Here’s part what Lisa told me: 

“Miranda, I know that you have a deep sense of responsibility for the welfare and well-being of others. So I want you to remember, thankfully, that the task of ministry is not yours alone.  It takes a church to be a church. And there are many other wonderful and talented tenders and feeders working with you… Always remember that all the while that you are a tender of the sheep, 

the Good Shepherd over all is Jesus.  

Don’t forget your lambhood.

Allow yourself to be tended.

Allow yourself to be fed.” 

And that’s why I’m taking this sabbatical. To allow myself to be tended, and fed, and led. Because I don’t always feel the way our meditation on Psalm 23 invited us to feel: protected, provided for, clear about the right path. When I’m tired or busy or overwhelmed, it’s harder for me to see where God is offering me nourishment. It’s harder for me to feel the Holy Spirit nudge me gently in a direction that leads towards more peace, more life. It’s harder for me to feel that even in the toughest circumstances, I am held by a Love greater than the universe. It’s harder for me to know what I and others deeply need, and moving that direction. Rest and play and just some open time without a to-do list, even for a little while, is an important part of being available to what Christ the good Shepherd offers me… offers all of us. 

So I’m taking this time to let myself rest – and let my church care for me by doing without me for a little while.So many people are helping, and so many people are being kind and supportive and understanding, and I’m so grateful. I’m grateful to be one of Jesus’ sheep with all of you. 

And while it feels like a big deal to go away, even for just a couple of months, I know I’m just leaving Jesus in charge…  Actually, Jesus is always in charge!… 

Conclude with a parish blessing.