Provision and Protection

I remember a time as a kid when we had to pack up the car quickly to head to one of my great-grandparents funerals. In haste I remember putting my sister’s blanket in our shoe bag. We arrived at the hotel late and went quickly to the room to crash. In the morning we found out that our car had been broken into during the night. They took a couple of our bags, my bag and our shoe bag. My bag had video games and my school books in it, which was sad, but I was more impacted by the loss of the shoe bag because it had my sister’s blanket in it. I felt responsible since I was the one who put it in there. I didn’t like that feeling at all. It felt like someone had come and wrecked my sense of the protection and security that I felt when I was with my family. When we got back from the trip, we had to pay the school for my stolen books. I felt ashamed, and almost confused, walking the check into the office to pay for them. What had my family done to deserve those books being stolen from us?

Protection and provision are two tough topics, and certainly ones that plague our minds in different situations. We can worry about how Jesus will provide for whatever need is forthcoming. At times, we can feel unprotected, whether electronically or physically. When we feel like this our minds race and it can be hard to find peace. We look for our own sense of protection and provision based upon what the world teaches, but Jesus teaches us to look to Him.

This week we take time to look at a passage that was confusing to many listening to Jesus, John 10:1-10 – Jesus the Good Shepherd. The people may have understood what shepherds are and the role they played, but making the connection to how that fit with them was too hard, as it can be for us. Yet the message we hear is surprisingly simple—Jesus came to bring life to the fullest, but the devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy. Even though this is a simple message, it doesn’t change how hard it is for our human minds to process in the midst of times when our protection and provision are being attacked. This Sunday we’ll learn more about God’s provision & protection.