Help for Cast Souls

"Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God."

 Psalm 43:5

Have you ever wondered why a good shepherd will leave 99 sheep in the wilderness to seek one sheep that is lost?  In Philip Keller's classic, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, this is explained in detail.  A sheep missing from the flock could be lost, injured, trapped, or cast.  A cast sheep is one that has fallen over and is unable to stand back up.  All sheep are susceptible to being cast, and factors such as heavy wool, uneven terrain, and pregnancy can play a role.  What looks funny or pathetic to us is a dire condition for a sheep!  When a sheep is cast and wildly struggles to regain its footing, gasses quickly build in the stomach which cuts off the blood supply to the limbs.  A cast sheep can die in a matter of hours.

A good shepherd, seeing a sheep he loves is missing from the flock, will set out on an urgent search to find the wayward sheep.  Should he discover the sheep is cast, he will roll the sheep to its stomach and gently lift from the ground.  Because the blood supply is cut off to the legs and rendered them useless, he is patient to massage the legs, support the sheep, and wait until the sheep can stand on its own.  Before too long the sheep will be feeling good and grazing, likely not even realising minutes before it was perilously close to death.  Jesus spoke of how a shepherd would gather his friends and urge them to rejoice, for he had found the sheep that was lost.

The Bible compares people to sheep.  All we like sheep have gone astray, and the LORD has laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all (Is. 53:6).  Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and rejoiced to redeem our lost souls from hell.  Jesus has promised us fullness of joy and peace that passes understanding, but like sheep there are many factors which can easily lay us low.  We can be depressed and down, physically drained and without the spiritual ability to lift ourselves up.  Sickness, circumstances, trials, persecution, sin, and our fleshly nature can throw us off our feet.  A sheep needs a shepherd to keep watch over him to be healthy and strong, and Christians are those who have answered the call for Jesus Christ to be their good shepherd.  David was a man who experienced perilous trouble and severe tests of faith, but God was with him.  There were many days where David resembled a cast sheep in spirit, flailing around and becoming increasingly numb.  Always the Good Shepherd found Him, put him on his feet again, and saved him from his enemies - even when that enemy was himself.

After David fled from Absalom his usurping son, he penned Psalm 3:1-8:  "LORD, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. ² Many are they who say of me, "There is no help for him in God." Selah ³ But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head. ⁴ I cried to the LORD with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill. Selah ⁵ I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustained me. ⁶ I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around. ⁷ Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God! For You have struck all my enemies on the cheekbone; You have broken the teeth of the ungodly. ⁸ Salvation belongs to the LORD. Your blessing is upon Your people. Selah."  God is the lifter of our heads when we cry out to Him.  When our souls are cast He will support us and lead us into good pasture.  Even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death we will fear no evil, for He will remain with us.  Surely goodness and mercy will follow God's people all the days of their lives, and they will dwell in the house of the LORD forever!