AI (Wombo) I Am The Door by Crystal A Murray (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
I will keep this short, but I’m so happy with this image of a gentle and caring shepherd keeping watch while the sheep rest. The idea of The Shepherd being the door of the sheepfold is in Scripture in John 10. For this, I want to share from the PEV (Plain English Version) because it’s written as a missionary tool, so it adds simple explanations.
John 10:7-11 PEV [7] so he said, “I will tell you something else. Listen to this, it’s true. I am like a gate in a sheep yard. [8-11] You know, the gate is the way for the sheep to go into the yard. Well, I am the way for people to come to God. If anybody comes to me, they will come into God’s family, and he will save them. And you know that sheep have to use the gate to go out and get grass to eat. Well just like that, people have to come to me to get whatever they need to live for God. And remember the shepherd in that picture story. Well, I am like that good shepherd that looks after his sheep properly. Some other men came before me, and they reckoned they were like shepherds, but they were liars. They were bad men, and my people didn’t listen to them, just like sheep only listen to their shepherd. Those bad people only want to steal the sheep, and kill them, and finish them up. But I am not like that. I came here to give people real life, so they can live with God for ever. You know, a good shepherd looks after his sheep properly, even if he has to die for them. Well, I am like that, I am ready to die to save my people.
Though PEV, along with other translations, uses the word gate, the HCSB and Young’s Literal use door. I’m sharing that because the idea for the picture actually came from a book I read a long time ago and want to read again called “Jesus in The Present Tense: The I AM Statements of Christ” by Warren W Wiersbe. In this book, the author puts it this way…
“The sheepfold was an enclosure surrounded by a wall of rocks that was too high for the sheep to jump over. The shepherds sometimes put thorny branches on the tops of the walls to deter thieves from trying to climb over. An opening in the wall allowed the sheep to enter and exit; and at night, the shepherd lay across that opening and became the door of the sheepfold. To get into the fold, the sheep had to pass over the shepherd’s body, and to get out of the fold, they had to do the same thing. If a predator or a thief tried to enter, he had to deal with the shepherd first.”
I love this! Both for the idea that an unbeliever must encounter the true Shepherd to truly enter the sheepfold, and also for the protection the sheep are given as they live in the sheepfold. Wiersbe states it in more detail, and it’s exceptionally powerful to listen to it in audio and imagine the quiet field of rest with a strong shepherd guarding the gateway. His Presence is the security, the guidance, and the love we need as we walk through the uncertainties of this life. And if we need a Gentle Shepherd’s lap to crawl up into, He’s there for that as well.
I highly recommend the book, including the audio if you get the electronic version. And I hope the image gives you a picture of yourself as a sheep with a protective and loving Shepherd, that strong tower where you can run and be safe. And since we’re talking about a Gentle Shepherd, I will share a song I sometimes hear from my husband’s playlist called “Tender Shepherd” by Sounds Like Reign.” Even if it’s written as a lullaby, we can all use that type of peace now and then.
Tender Shepherd by Sounds Like Reign (with lyrics)
Book Cover for Shattered Justice (Family Honors Series, Book I) by Karen Ball Click the book cover image to open a new tab/window for the book page at Amazon.
God is just. No matter what we may see, feel, imagine, or think, that is an absolute fact. Sometimes it feels like He is far away, maybe even ignoring us, but He always knows what He is doing, and He will always answer the right answer in the right time. This world has so much injustice, which by definition means justice is not done, so we may wonder what God is doing as we watch the innocent suffer and the criminals prevail, but there is an eternity of true justice in our future if we trust God.
In today’s reading from Numbers 7:42 through Numbers 7:71, we get a little more of a glimpse of what our future world might be like as we see more of Israel’s leaders bringing gifts for the wilderness tabernacle. I say it’s a glimpse of our future world because right at this moment of our reading, we’re only seeing the well-oiled workings of people in obedience to Their Creator. In addition to obedience, these men are gathering love offerings to help keep the ministry moving forward, and the offerings are abundant.
For just a quick rundown, yesterday’s reading covered days one through five in the list of those bringing gifts to the priests, and today covers days six through ten. Yesterday’s givers included representation from the tribes of Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Reuben, and Simeon. Today’s givers include representation from the tribes of Gad, Ephraim, Manasseh, Benjamin, and Dan. On both days, the gifts included silver, gold, grains and oils for sacrifices, animals for sacrifices, and much more. And, again, I recommend reading the linked passage above for complete details.
Now, I’m going to go in a totally different direction here and use something from the reading to jump off into a quick book review. One of the leaders of Israel, the one from the tribe of Benjamin, is named “Avidan.” That is the name of the main character from book one of the Family Honors trilogy by Karen Ball. Avidan means “God is Just.”
I’ve read all three of the books in the trilogy, and they are some of my favorite books. The three books are about three siblings in the Justice family, and each sibling gets the focus of one book, though all the siblings show up in all the books. The characters all became so real to me that now, years later, I still want to find the little town in Oregon where they lived and try to meet all three of them. 🙂
Book one is called Shattered Justice, and it focuses on the story of Avidan, aka Deputy Sheriff Dan. Dan is the law in a small town that has its share of big problems. He faces more than most of us could deal with, and it shatters his sense of justice. In a “Job-like” storyline, we watch Dan go through his trials in very human ways as he struggles to find the help he knows God promises his children. As readers, we get to see the people God sows into Dan’s life to give him strength to face each new trial and an uncertain future, and we get to watch Dan discover why these people are there as he needs them.
I’m struggling to figure out what to tell that won’t be considered spoilers, though knowing things ahead of time does not hinder the reading. I read the books out of order since book two, “Kaleidoscope Eyes,” was the first one recommended to me, and I read it before realizing it was part of a series. The affect it had on my reading of book one was simply that I was prepared to cry at any moment because I knew bad things were going to happen, but the story still surprised me with just how they happened.
I want to just say, “Trust me, this book and series is worth reading,” but I know people want reasons for that, so I’ll just add that if you have ever experienced struggles that seemed impossible to get through, read this great piece of fiction with realistic events and emotions to find hope. By the time you get to the end of Dan’s struggles to come back from blaming and rejecting God, you will see how, even in the face of tragedy, God is just.
Crystal is, like her name, multi-faceted. She can even write about herself in third person and only feel a little awkward about it. 🙂 She loves to write; she loves kaleidoscopes, fractals, and all things colorful; she loves her husband, her family, and her feline furkids; and mostly she loves Yahveh Almighty, her Creator. She believes her creative mind is in her DNA from Him, and she believes He sees His creations as she sees the images inside a kaleidoscope–all different yet all beautiful and most beautiful when light (His light) shines through them.
Crystal Writes A Blog 
God is Just
Book Cover for Shattered Justice (Family Honors Series, Book I) by Karen Ball
Click the book cover image to open a new tab/window for the book page at Amazon.
God is just. No matter what we may see, feel, imagine, or think, that is an absolute fact. Sometimes it feels like He is far away, maybe even ignoring us, but He always knows what He is doing, and He will always answer the right answer in the right time. This world has so much injustice, which by definition means justice is not done, so we may wonder what God is doing as we watch the innocent suffer and the criminals prevail, but there is an eternity of true justice in our future if we trust God.
In today’s reading from Numbers 7:42 through Numbers 7:71, we get a little more of a glimpse of what our future world might be like as we see more of Israel’s leaders bringing gifts for the wilderness tabernacle. I say it’s a glimpse of our future world because right at this moment of our reading, we’re only seeing the well-oiled workings of people in obedience to Their Creator. In addition to obedience, these men are gathering love offerings to help keep the ministry moving forward, and the offerings are abundant.
For just a quick rundown, yesterday’s reading covered days one through five in the list of those bringing gifts to the priests, and today covers days six through ten. Yesterday’s givers included representation from the tribes of Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Reuben, and Simeon. Today’s givers include representation from the tribes of Gad, Ephraim, Manasseh, Benjamin, and Dan. On both days, the gifts included silver, gold, grains and oils for sacrifices, animals for sacrifices, and much more. And, again, I recommend reading the linked passage above for complete details.
Now, I’m going to go in a totally different direction here and use something from the reading to jump off into a quick book review. One of the leaders of Israel, the one from the tribe of Benjamin, is named “Avidan.” That is the name of the main character from book one of the Family Honors trilogy by Karen Ball. Avidan means “God is Just.”
I’ve read all three of the books in the trilogy, and they are some of my favorite books. The three books are about three siblings in the Justice family, and each sibling gets the focus of one book, though all the siblings show up in all the books. The characters all became so real to me that now, years later, I still want to find the little town in Oregon where they lived and try to meet all three of them. 🙂
Book one is called Shattered Justice, and it focuses on the story of Avidan, aka Deputy Sheriff Dan. Dan is the law in a small town that has its share of big problems. He faces more than most of us could deal with, and it shatters his sense of justice. In a “Job-like” storyline, we watch Dan go through his trials in very human ways as he struggles to find the help he knows God promises his children. As readers, we get to see the people God sows into Dan’s life to give him strength to face each new trial and an uncertain future, and we get to watch Dan discover why these people are there as he needs them.
I’m struggling to figure out what to tell that won’t be considered spoilers, though knowing things ahead of time does not hinder the reading. I read the books out of order since book two, “Kaleidoscope Eyes,” was the first one recommended to me, and I read it before realizing it was part of a series. The affect it had on my reading of book one was simply that I was prepared to cry at any moment because I knew bad things were going to happen, but the story still surprised me with just how they happened.
I want to just say, “Trust me, this book and series is worth reading,” but I know people want reasons for that, so I’ll just add that if you have ever experienced struggles that seemed impossible to get through, read this great piece of fiction with realistic events and emotions to find hope. By the time you get to the end of Dan’s struggles to come back from blaming and rejecting God, you will see how, even in the face of tragedy, God is just.
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May 22, 2014 Posted by Crystal A Murray (aka CrystalWriter) | Bible Study, Nonfiction, Torah Commentary | Bible Commentary, Bible study, book review, Complete Jewish Bible, gifts, God, Israel, justice, Lord, Numbers, Scripture, tabernacle, Torah Portions, tribes, Yahveh | Leave a comment