In the cool of an overcast July morning, Mother and her 15-yeald daughter Sally hurried to pick all the raspberries before the sun broke through and it turned hot. Sally seemed to show somewhat less enthusiasm than Mother, although she loved the plump, juicy raspberries.
“Mother,” Sally said laughing, “there you go again! I really think you would stand on your head to catch one silly raspberry before it drops. See, your scarf is caught... and now you’ve scratched your arm! Why do you worry about one raspberry dropping when there are so many? I don’t think we’ll ever finish picking them. What is one raspberry more or less when there are so many?”
Loosening her scarf and glancing at the scratch on her arm, Mother smiled a little sheepishly. “You know, I’ve wondered that myself sometimes, but it seems a shame for beautifully juicy fruit to lie in the dirt and rot. I just can’t let them fall.”
“Humph!” retorted Sally. “It doesn’t bother me!”
Mother’s thoughts took a serious turn and after a few minutes she asked, “Sally, what if the Lord had felt that way about you and me? I’m glad it wasn’t too much trouble for Him to concern Himself about silly Sally and stubborn Mother who showed no desire to do anything but go on in their own sinful ways. He didn’t say, ‘Why bother with them when there are many other people who might be less trouble to Me?’ Like the wonderful Shepherd He is, our Saviour went out, searched for, and found the lost sheep!”
"‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.’" Sally reverently quoted John 10:1111I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. (John 10:11). “Yes, Mother, I am so glad He found me. It’s really wonderful knowing, too, that ‘the Father Himself’ loves us (John 16:2727For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God. (John 16:27)). Also, ‘All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out’ (John 6:3737All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. (John 6:37)). Even you, Mother, let the poorly formed and stunted raspberries fall to the ground, but the Lord doesn’t. It seems as if He especially cared about people with problems, like the poor, the blind, and the widows.”
Have you met the seeking Saviour, that Good Shepherd who wants to carry you home to heaven on His shoulders?
ML-12/03/1989