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READ: 1 SAMUEL 17:34-36; PSALM 23:1-6; EZEKIEL 34:11-12, 22\n\n\n\nOne of Jesus\u2019s names is the Good Shepherd. Throughout the Bible, we find glimpses of what this means, and in John 10:11, Jesus says, \u201cI am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.\u201d I\u2019ve heard teachers illustrate what Jesus does for us by explaining how shepherds care for their sheep by feeding them and making sure they don\u2019t get carried away by a raging river. That\u2019s all true, yet there\u2019s another aspect of being a shepherd that we sometimes forget. We don\u2019t often think of a shepherd as a courageous hero.\n\n\n\nThink about sheep for a second. They do dumb stuff. And predators, like lions and bears, think sheep are a great snack. Whenever they get the chance, they snatch an unsuspecting sheep and trot off to enjoy their food. What does the shepherd do? Watch the bleating animal being carried away and think, \u201cHow sad. But at least I won\u2019t have to deal with that pest anymore\u201d? No. He grabs whatever weapons are available and takes off to take care of business. He kills that predator and takes the sheep home. He tends to their wounds and places them back with the flock, away from danger.\n\n\n\nIn the same way our Good Shepherd looks after us. He first rescued us from sin by coming to sacrifice His life on the cross and then rise from the dead. In doing so, He defeated Satan and the grave once and for all. And now, He continually protects His people, because even when we\u2019re Christians we still mess up\u2014we sin, we make mistakes, and we get into trouble. When our circumstances and our own failures seem to carry us away and eat us, Jesus breaks in. He shows us the foes are beatable, because He is with us and He is Lord over all.\n\n\n\nThe Good Shepherd is there whenever we call for Him. And when the world, its obligations, and all kinds of trials batter us around, He\u2019s always there to care for us. \u2022 Morgan Mitchell\n\n\n\n\u2022 Jesus rescues us from sin and death, but He doesn\u2019t stop there. He continues to rescue and care for us as we go through the struggles of this life. And when He returns to restore creation and right every wrong, we will live with Him forever, free from dangers and difficulties. How might picturing Jesus as the courageous Hero-Shepherd, and ourselves as helpless sheep, make it easier for us to call on Jesus when we\u2019re in trouble? Why is crying out to Jesus better than trying to figure things out on our own?\n\n\n\n\u201cFor this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.\u201d Ezekiel 34:11 (NIV)