"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me -- just as the Father knows me and I know the Father -- and I lay down my life for the sheep" (John 10:14-15 NIV).
My husband John is the good shepherd on our farm. During this lambing season he has spent more than two full hours a day with his flock of 50 sheep. Many days it has been three hours in the lambing shed. Since he typically also works nearly 12 hours a day at his job that pays, that qualifies him for laying down his life for the sheep!
When he heads out to chore the outside ewes (those who didn't have babies) come running up to the gate awaiting their daily portion. They hear him coming even though he didn't call them; they are always watching. They have shelter in a shed but also have the freedom to wander through the pasture now coated in snow. Surprisingly, they still make at least one trip a day out to forage for grass. These 10-12 are the sheep our dog is responsible for keeping safe from the coyotes. In the summer Bella protects the whole flock of 50.
"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27 NIV).
John enters the lambing shed and instantly the sheep draw to attention. The youngest lambs and their mothers and the mothers-in-waiting enjoy the heated portion of the shed. Individual mothers and their babies are in separate pens and a large pen holds the mothers-to-be. Everyone is hungry and excited for feeding time. Some climb up the pen standing in wait for that generous portion of hay and the scoop of grain. They are usually ready for a fresh bucket of water as well. It takes a lot to keep making milk for those babies. If the babies are quiet and resting it is a sign that they have full bellies. Those crying may not be getting enough milk from mama. So there is one pen of three lambs who now get bottle fed on demand.
In the back portion of the shed the older lambs have a weaning area where they can get away from their mothers and try tiny morsels of lamb feed and rest under the heat lamps. They can go back through the narrow panels to nurse off mama whenever they choose. These mothers are really hungry as they have to share the feed and hay with all the other mothers. They tend to be rude and rambunctious trying to be the first to eat and get the most grain. They all love the hay; even the babies quickly learn to nibble at the hay for its taste and nutrients.
The shepherd knows when a sheep is sick. John's been doctoring a mother-to-be for several weeks. She is a good ewe and he is hoping she'll have a healthy lamb but she won't eat when he's looking at her and she stands back from all the other sheep. He continues to watch her and care for her because he is the good shepherd.
"The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep" (John 10:2 NIV).
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