The Heart of a Shepherd

When you think of the Christmas story, what is the first image that comes to mind? Perhaps it’s a star shining brightly over a lowly stable. Or it is a beautiful yet exhausted new mother and her loyal and strong husband. Maybe it’s three exotic men, journeying from far from the east, camels laden with all manner of extravagant gifts. Perhaps it’s celestial beings descending from on high, filling the clear star-spangled sky with their glorious songs of praise. Likely it is a tiny infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, layed in a manger full of hay.

For me, the first image that comes to my mind is not any of the characters or scenes listed above, but the humble shepherds who stood watch in the night, guarding their flocks of sheep. I have always admired these unassuming individuals in the Christmas story, and have made it a personal goal of mine to strive to have the heart of a shepherd. “But Avery,” you might be asking, “how does one ‘have the heart of a shepherd’?” Well, it really just boils down to three simple choices.

First, in order to have the heart of a shepherd, we must be decisive in our choice to follow Christ. Luke 2:15 reads, “And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.” Did you note the key words in that verse? “Let us now go.” The shepherds didn’t expect to meet an angel of the Lord, much less entire choirs of heavenly hosts, and they definitely didn’t plan to go to Bethlehem that fateful holy night.

No, far from it. Their job was simply to watch their flocks through the night — guard the sheep from those that seek to harm them, not go gallivanting off to the next town over. But that’s not what they chose to do. They chose to give it all up — their expectations, their worldly responsibilities, their hesitations — and immediately go to the Lord. There was no muddling about, no weighing of the pros and cons, no getting their affairs in order first. They simply decided to turn to the Lord first and trust that everything else would fall into place along the way. To have the heart of a shepherd, we must lay any indecisiveness and hesitations aside and just go to Jesus, trusting that everything else will fall into place along the way.

Second, in order to have the heart of a shepherd, it’s not enough to just go to Christ, but rather, we must go quickly. Luke 2:16 reads, “And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.” Once again, what are the key words to note from this verse? “They came with haste.” According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, one definition of “haste” means, “eagerness to act.” Acts 27:25 states simply, “Wherefore, be of good cheer.” How often are we not only quick but also eager to undertake our journey towards Christ? How often do we fulfill the duties that have been asked of us — reading our scriptures, saying our daily prayers, attending church meetings, serving those around us — with haste? To have the heart of a shepherd, we must accomplish the things that have been asked of us, to come to Jesus, with haste and good cheer.

Finally, in order to have the heart of a shepherd, we must share what we have learned about Christ with others. Luke 2:17 reads, “And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.” What are the key words in this verse? “They made known abroad.” When I read this verse, I can picture very clearly the shepherds running from house to house, door to door, stopping every individual they crossed paths with on the street to proclaim what they had seen and experienced and learned. They wanted the world to come to know the same Jesus that they did. In order to have the heart of a shepherd, it is our duty to take the things we have seen and experienced and learned and share them with all that will hear it, to help those around us come to know the same Jesus that we know.

Christmas this year has already come and gone, but I hope that as we’re gearing up for the New Year and the new beginnings it brings, we will all make it a goal to have the heart of a shepherd year-round. I wonder if the reason Jesus used shepherds so often in His parables was as a way to honor the shepherds who came to visit Him on that sacred, silent night. I have no doubt that they took their experiences and built their lives around the Christ they came to know. I know that as we do the same — as we make the efforts to continually lay aside our hesitations, turn towards Christ with haste, and share the miracles we’ve seen in our own lives — our hearts will become shepherd hearts that are eager to follow the Good Shepherd and are continually filled with the beautiful spirit of Christmas.

Avery Palenske is home for the holidays. She forgot what it was like to have the sky fully darken by 4 pm, but has joyfully reinstated herself in the normal Palmer Christmas bustle. Between helping out with Special Santa, caroling at Maple Springs Retirement Home, and getting ready for the annual Palenske salsa delivery, she’s been enjoying her time back home. But nothing is more enjoyable than when she attends The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.