One of my favourite images to study in the Bible is that of a shepherd, particularly as a metaphor for leadership (in fact I'm hoping that will be the focus of my post-grad research for the next few years!). So when I received the new stamp set The Shepherd's Voice I knew I would be creating a lot of pages with it!
When I got this set I did a search on Bible Gateway for the word shepherd and made a note of loads of scriptures I could journal. This verse from Revelation 7:17 really caught my attention:
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Not only is Jesus the good shepherd, he is also the Lamb. He knows what it is like to be one of us, to be governed by bad shepherds, to be vulnerable and mistreated, to be weak. Having experienced what it is like to be one of us, he also laid down his life as the sacrificial Lamb who paid the price of our sin. What an awesome shepherd and leader he is!
This imagery also turns on its head the worldly view of leadership as power and strength... In Jesus we see true leadership modeled as self-sacrifice, compassion and love as a shepherd cares tenderly for his sheep. This encourages me in coming to him in my weakness because I know that he understands. It also challenges me in my leadership of others as I need to remember that leading others in the kingdom of God needs to follow the pattern of Jesus as the sacrificial shepherd. This applies in the home, in the workplace and in the church.
For this page I stamped the lamb and good shepherd/staff images then coloured in pencil. The crown is from another new set from Sweet 'n Sassy called Set Apart. I stamped the verse using a combination of Bitty Minnie Alpha and Happy Alpha. Here are the sets I used:
I'm so grateful to have the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world as the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls.
x Amy x
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