“Tell me, O you whom my soul loves,
Where do you pasture your flock,
Where do you make it lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who veils herself
Beside the flocks of your companions?”
“If you yourself do not know,
Most beautiful among women,
Go forth in the footsteps of the flock
And pasture your young goats
By the shepherds’ tents.”
— Song of Songs 1:7-8
I worship the Lord very much when I come to this section. Before we touch the Lord, we can say amen to just about anything in the church life. But as we touch the Lord and begin to pursue Him, we begin to feel burdened about some particular matter in the church life, and then we wander astray.
At such a time, we may become condescending towards the more experienced brothers, feeling that they are merely our “mother’s sons.” But we thank the Lord that rather than rebuking us for being proud and selfish, He gently readjusts us, saying, “You fairest among women, if you don’t know, go forth in the footsteps of the flock, and pasture your young goats by the shepherds’ tents.”
Adapted from The Journey of Life, pages 147-148.
Tomorrow: “Treasuring the Saints and Acknowledging the Shepherds”