Who Is Your Flock?

     If you have been a sincere and earnest follower of Jesus, you have a flock. Do you realize that? Have you considered who your flock may be? As I studied 1st Thessalonians this past week, I gained a greater appreciation for the deep and penetrating love that Paul had for his flock. As he walked the courses of his missionary journeys, he met numerous people, many of whom became true believers in the One True God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus. He may have not know them for much time before moving on to the next city where he preached the gospel and again, made new friends and fellow believers. His letter to the Thessalonians overwhelmed me with the care and encouragement that he desired to express to them; his longing to see them again and to know how they were doing in their faith-walk.
     Paul not only took the commission of sharing the gospel seriously, he also knew the importance of the follow-through. He took it as a personal privilege and responsibility to maintain a relationship with these people and to build them up in their faith; like he had a vested interest in their spiritual growth. He did! He was their shepherd and they were his flock. Paul tirelessly prayed for and encouraged his flock. He wrote letters to them and sent others to see them and to check-in on their progress and in some cases to rebuke them for bad habits or poor theology. Near or far, he played an integral role in their spiritual growth.
     If you have shared the gospel with just one person who heard, listened and believed, you have a flock. It may be a small one, but you now have the very same privilege and responsibility to continue assisting that person in building their relationship with Jesus. Maybe it is through prayer, phone calls, face-time or taking them to church each Sunday. Maybe the Lord would even ask you to invest time in doing a Bible study with them. Whatever He requests of you, you have a vested interest in that person. If you have been walking with the Lord for a number of years, your flock may be quite large by now.
     Does this mean that you need to quit your day job to become a full time shepherd? Well, if that is the Lord's leading then yes, but in most cases keeping a prayer list would be a good start. Write down as many people that you can think of that you have ministered the gospel to. This list in itself will be encouraging to you. You will be amazed as the names come into your mind, at the number of people that you have influenced! From there, as you pray each day, allow the leading of the Lord to pray for those whom He lays on your heart. You can also add to the prayer list the people that are currently in your circle of influence, but not yet believing in the Lord. I did this and was surprised by this number as well. Many of the people that I put on this list, I realized I had never prayed for them.
     Our flock needs our support, prayers and encouragement. Think about how you feel when you are encouraged. It is so important and faith-building. Lets do our part as shepherds. Set a goal this week to start your list and watch it grow. Then ask the Lord to help you set aside the time that is necessary to pray, visit and encourage those who are in your flock. Paul is such an outstanding example of this. He worked diligently as a tent-maker, but yet his priority was his job as shepherd. Can you say the same? I can't always and that needs to change!