Pastoral Landscapes

The final part of this passage echoes Psalm 23. There will be no more hunger or thirst or pain. The shepherd will provide shelter, protection, nourishment, refreshment, and comfort.

There is, however, a significant shift from the psalm. The Lamb is the Lord. A sheep has become the shepherd.

I once went to a seminar on models of leadership in the church that rejected the idea of pastors being shepherds because it drew too sharp a distinction between the leader and the flock. Real sheep can never become shepherds.

It is also true that every pastor was once a member of a flock and seeks to follow the example of Jesus, who is both sheep and shepherd. It can be a difficult balancing act for pastors to hold these two aspects of themselves in tension. I know that I haven’t always gotten it right!

I don’t want to be put on a pedestal, and I try to be honest and open about my own vulnerability and “sheepishness”! At the same time, I recognize that members of my flock look to me for leadership and need me to be strong. I can only do that because Jesus—the Lamb who shared our human hunger, thirst, and pain—is also the Shepherd who knows what we need and leads us from death to life.

I have learned to be attentive to my hunger, my thirst, and my tears because they reveal what is truly life-giving for me. This daily practice then helps me to guide others on their own pilgrimage to eternal life.

This awareness of my own need is also the reason that I stand “before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple.” Whatever language I use—Lord, Shepherd, Lamb, or something else—the beginning and the end of my day, my life, my ministry, and my prayer is God.