“Laying Down Our Lives” by Beth DeCristofaro
Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said “… in (Jesus’) name this man stands before you healed. He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved." (Acts 8:8, 10-12)
I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd. This is why the Father loves me because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This command I have received from my Father. (John 10:14-18)
Piety
Fill me, Holy Spirit that I might always walk in the presence of Jesus. God help me to be a living sign of the Good Shepherd, both following and leading, that your flock increase and your glory is made known.
Study
Mary Ann was a nursing administrator with whom I had the privilege to work eons ago. We worked together in the small Midwest hospital where she had night responsibility for patient care and I was an overnight chaplain. We never had the luxury of a coffee sit-down because our nights were busy and there was no cafeteria after 7 p.m. but we spent many hours together at emergencies, catching up as we made rounds between units and attending to tired, fearful sometimes angry patients and families together. She was consistently wise, calm, caring, firm and gentle as she dealt with community and staff alike even when repeating for the umpteenth time the necessary protocols or necessary boundaries on good care. In many ways, she was the face of what I hoped I could be in ministry.
Many years later Judy was my supervisor at a family services organization. Her personality could not have been more different. She was abrupt, quick to respond and almost authoritarian, not very patient when she confronted foolish situations or people and yet wise, fair and so very smart. My role included supervising staff, running a small program for low-income caregivers and also grant writer to keep that program solvent. My skill set was decidedly not the best for this last duty. Judy guided me to be a much better manager of people and steward of our non-profit’s core mission and values. I trusted her to a fault when decisions had to be made.
Both of these remarkable women were shepherds to me and I saw their work as holy work. Their passion and commitment as well as their devotion to continuing their own growth as good administrators were inspiring. They lived I know mine and mine know me and worked for the good of their flock. And as women of faith they, I know, are important building blocks in God’s Kingdom, resting securely upon the cornerstone God provided through Jesus the Good Shepherd.
Action
Who are the shepherds of your life? Give thanks – perhaps let them know the blessings they have bequeathed. Do I generously shepherd others for the glory of God? How do I lay down your life for others?
Illustration credit: Photography by Ali Awais, Artist in Lahore, Pakistan
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