| Smelling Like Sheep? |

Lately I've been pondering the social dynamic of church as it concerns me. The pastor of a church is called to be a shepherd to a flock, but at what point is the shepherd just like any other sheep, I wonder. I read a devotional for a class of mine from a book called They Smell Like Sheep wherein the author placed a heavy emphasis on the shepherds intimacy with his flock to the point that the shepherd smells like his stinky dirty sheep.

To this I began pondering my own sense of self, my own sense of pastoring, and whether or not I can really do that. I'm often too much a perfectionist to get down into the muck and the grime; I'm too concerned with my own appearance, my own pride, and my own ability to bring about change. I'm coming to realize that shepherding isn't simply about the rod and the staff - discipline and comfort - for it is also about being a sheep too.

Perhaps I've fallen too far away from the notion that I am a sheep too. I've become this monster of a shepherd, intimidating his sheep, petrifying them into inaction, and debilitating the flock. Exaggerate much? So maybe it's not that bad, but if I keep down this path, surely this exaggeration will become reality.

I'm coming to realize that the social dynamic of the church (as it concerns me) is that I'm not some distant and removed mover of chess pieces about a board, I'm just another sheep who's been called to get down dirty in the muck, encourage, exhort, and exemplifying what it means to be a sheep set apart for God.