9th Sunday after Pentecost

You would think, given all of the images of sheep and shepherds today, that
It was Good Shepherd Sunday!
It feels like a replay of that Sunday in the Easter season, where we
consider Jesus the Good Shepherd.

Sheep or Shepherds are mentioned in THREE of our four readings today.

And in those three texts, we see that there can be good shepherds, and
bad shepherds.

The good shepherds are those who lovingly care for their sheep:
Those who lead the sheep to still waters,
And to rest in green pastures.

Good shepherds bring comfort,
And food,
And calm all fears.

Good shepherds provide safety and security.

Bad Shepherds,
Like those mentioned in our first lesson from Jeremiah,
Scatter, and even destroy their sheep.

Bad shepherds are inattentive,
They drive the sheep away, rather than draw them in.

And then there are the sheep that have no shepherd at all.
Not a good shepherd, and not a bad one:
But sheep who are wondering lost,
who might long for comfort, safety, and security.

In today’s gospel story,
There’s a great crowd:
That is just that.
Sheep without a shepherd.

And Jesus:
Who is not only a good shepherd:
But the GREATEST shepherd of all:
Saw that they were sheep without a shepherd,
and he had compassion for them.

I love the shepherd sheep image for a lot of reasons.
First, and most obviously, because there’s great comfort in knowing that
“The Lord is my shepherd.”

But we’re also not ONLY sheep of the great shepherd.

There are times in our lives, when we are also the shepherd of others.

There are times when we are a “good shepherd” offering comfort ,
compassion, and security.

And then there are times when we’ve been the “bad shepherd”:
inattentive, and pushing our sheep away.

There are even times that we feel like sheep without a shepherd.

The point is:
We’re all human.
We have good shepherd days,
We have bad shepherd days.
We have days when we feel lost without a shepherd,
And days where its much easier to trust our Lord and shepherd.

And no matter what day it is:
It’s okay.

Because the hard and beautiful truth if it all is that:
Being a Christian doesn’t mean that every pain or worry diminishes.

And that’s where the 23 rd Psalm really holds its power.

Hear the Psalm again:

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,

And leads me beside still waters.
He revives my soul,
And guides me along right pathways for his Name’s sake.

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil,
For you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me,
You have anointed my head with oil, and my cup is running over.
Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

This Psalm has power.
For a number of reasons.
But most significantly because it acknowledges the “valley of the shadow of
death.”

The valley of the shadow of death is real.

I can’t help but be astonished:
That we would get this famous Psalm this week:
When many of us are grieving the loss of Joe:
a member of our flock.

We prayed,
We kept vigil,

And we saw this week, that sorrow is real.
That the valley of the shadow of death is real.

We will all go through that valley.
Some of us many times,
Some of us fewer:
Yet we will all go through it at one time or another.

And when you’re in that dark valley,
It’s easy to feel like you’re all alone:
A sheep without a shepherd.

Even the most faithful among us, can feel lost and alone in the dark valley.

And that’s why we need the 23 rd Psalm.

There’s a famous Anglican theological principal that states “Praying shapes
believing.”

It comes from the Latin, “Lex orandi, Lex Credendi”,
Which literally means “the rule of prayer is the rule of belief.”

It means that our habits of prayer shape our beliefs.

We sometimes assume that it’s the other way around:
That we believe first,
And then our prayers come out of our believes.

But this primary principal of our theology in the Episcopal Church:
And in our prayerbook,
Tells us that we don’t HAVE to believe first.
And that our praying can shape our believing.

You don’t have to have your beliefs perfectly in order to pray to the
Greatest Shepherd of all.

You CAN be uncertain,
You CAN be unperfect.
You can feel utterly lost.
You can even feel like you might not believe.
And you can pray anyway.
Because our prayers shape our beliefs.

So if you’re feeling like a sheep without a shepherd:
It’s okay.
Pray the 23 rd Psalm.
Pray it like you believe it, even if you’re having a hard time believing it:
because our praying shapes our believing.

If you’re feeling pretty good because you’ve been a compassionate and
loving shepherd to others:
Pray the 23 rd Psalm:
Pray it to remember that the truest, kindest, most faithful shepherd is not
you:

But our Lord God, alone.
Pray it because our praying shapes our believing.

And if you’re feeling like you’ve been a bad shepherd?
Pushing people away--
Responding to your own wants above the needs of others:
Pray the 23 rd psalm:
Be led to the still waters that revive your soul,
And set you back on the right path:
Because our praying shapes our believing.

I invite you today,
To pray the 23 rd Psalm wherever you find yourself.
Whether you’re feeling smug about being a great disciple of Jesus,
Or feeling guilty because you know you’ve done wrong,
Whether you’re in a deep dark valley,
Or even feeling like a sheep without a shepherd,
Pray the 23 rd Psalm.
Because praying shapes believing.

Pray the 23 rd Psalm wherever you find yourself in the moment:
If you find yourself as a sheep,
Or you find yourself a shepherd, good or bad:

Pray to the Greatest shepherd of all:
No matter where you are.

And the more you do it:
The more your prayers will shape you:
Form you:
OOZE into you.

And maybe:
JUST MAYBE:
The next time you find yourself in the shadowed valley:
You’ll know that you’re never alone.

I invite you now to come as you are,
And pray the 23 rd Psalm with me one more time today:

“The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
And leads me beside still waters.

He revives my soul,
And guides me along right pathways for his Name’s sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil,
For you are with me,
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me;
You have anointed my head with oil,

And my cup is running over.
Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Amen.