When God shows up and does something special, it is what is called a "Thin Place," a glimpse into the true reality of life with God. A thin place is a place where God breaks through; it is where his voice breaks through the darkness, the desperation, and the hopelessness and brings forth hope and a miracle.

This last week was a “Thin Place” moment for us at Shalom Farms.

On Friday morning, March 27th, we had twin lambs born. I arrived to check on Ohana, our momma ewe, just shortly after the lambs were born, and I noticed that one of the lambs was not getting up and walking.

I picked up both lambs and momma followed. I got them shut into the shelter where Ohana, whom we often call Hana, could be alone with her babies so they could have time to bond, and so Hana could not get too far away from the little one that was struggling. I decided I would check back in a couple of hours to see how they were all doing.

When I came back a couple of hours later, my heart just sank within me.

The little one was still not able to get up and walk. Actually, he was not able to use his rear legs at all. He would try to "army crawl" to Hana with his front legs, and his rear legs would just drag behind him.

I could tell the little guy was a fighter because he was really trying to get to her so he could get his first meal.

This little guy was giving it all he had to try and get to his momma’s teat so he could eat, but he just couldn’t do it on his own strength.

As a shepherd, I quickly realized that I needed to do something or this little one would have no chance at life. Isn’t that exactly what Jesus did for me, and for us? I didn’t know what to do so I prayed. That is what I do anytime I don’t know what to do, and on our farm we are in prayer a lot.

I didn’t have any colostrum replacer because we never need any, and I didn’t have time to drive to the store to get some. The only one with colostrum was his mother, and that little boy sure needed it. So I decided I had to milk her, then feed it to him from a bottle.

Lorraine was at work so I was all alone and didn’t have my best helper; however, I remembered that God is also my helper and he is always available. I knew that I would need his help to accomplish this task. Hana had never been milked before, so I knew she would put up a fight.

I hurried and got our portable milk stand, a big bowl of oats to keep Hana temporarily distracted, our hand milker, a bottle and nipple, and some Karo Syrup water mix for a quick boost of energy for the little one.

I caught Hana and got her on the milk stand, gave her oats, and all seemed good. Then as I started to milk her, the fight broke out. She was not going to do this the easy way and opted for the 15 minute wrestle instead.

At one point, she landed a good blow and sent the milk bottle flying 5 feet across the shelter. But in the end, God gave me the victory and I had a full 6 ounce bottle of colostrum. Praise the Lord!

I quickly got the nipple on the bottle and waited to see if the little one would take it. To my surprise, he took it immediately and downed the whole bottle in seconds. I also gave him the Karo Syrup water mix for a quick boost of energy. The immediate task was accomplished. Now, I would leave him with his mom and pray that God would heal him, give him strength, and help him walk.

When Lorraine got home from work, we went to check on him, and sadly there was no difference. He still could not use his rear legs and was still army crawling to try and get to his momma. We knew that he would not survive living with his mom and the rest of the sheep if he could not walk, so we made the hard decision to pull him from Hana and move him to the bottle kid pan so that we could care for him better.

Lorraine and I spent Friday night, Saturday and Sunday working with him to help him stand, trying to strengthen his legs and his hips. He did great; he could stand, but as soon as he tried to move, he would collapse back to the ground. Every time we saw him down, we would pick him back up and have him stand. We fed him plenty of bottles and made sure he was eating well.

Then last Sunday, March 29th, he started walking.

He started following Lorraine and me wherever we would go; shakily at first but when he would fall, he would get back up all by himself.

By Sunday evening, he was running and bouncing.

Lorraine named him Hezekiah. Hezekiah means “God strengthens” or “The LORD has strengthened.” It is the perfect name because that is exactly what God did for this little lamb.

It is so beautiful to see little Hezekiah running around now with all of our baby goats in our bottle baby pen. When we let him out of the pen, he follows me wherever I go; he does not leave my side and he never takes his eyes off of me when I am with him.

Since I am a shepherd to all of our animals, I give of myself for them and do all that I can to ensure they have the best life possible every single day they are on this farm. Even if it means wrestling a momma sheep for colostrum or taking the time to help a weak little one stand, I can only do so much.

As a shepherd, I have to rely on Jesus, my Shepherd.

We could never heal Hezekiah or give him strength; only Jesus can do that. When we faithfully steward all that Jesus has given us and partner with him, it is a beautiful thing to see his grace and the miracles he is doing all around us.

Because of sin, all of us are broken and desperate. We are all like little Hezekiah, trying in our own strength to satisfy our desires and make a good life for ourselves, but we are just army crawling in the dirt, never able to reach what we truly need.

But God, in Ephesians 2:1-10, did not leave us in this condition, dead in our trespasses and sin. Instead, he has made us alive together in Jesus, our Good Shepherd and our Messiah.

Jesus is my Shepherd, and he would not leave me in my desperation; he did everything to restore me and bring me back into a right relationship with God.

That “everything” took place on another Friday many years ago, when Jesus laid down his life for his sheep. John 10:11 says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” Jesus died on Good Friday and rose again on Easter Sunday so that we may walk in newness of life with him now and forever.

My prayer is that I can be like little Hezekiah. He is no longer army crawling; he is walking in life and following his shepherd.

May I faithfully keep my eyes on Jesus and follow my Shepherd everywhere he goes.

The other night our brand new (3 days old) baby goat “Homer” was exploring the big rocks in his pen.

He was excited to play and explore with his brother and friends, until he backed up and got his head stuck between two big rocks.

That little guy started crying and screaming for help but none of the other goats came to help (not even his mother lifted her head from the feeder to check on her son).

My first reaction was that I did not want him associating this "trauma" with Lorraine and I, so we simply backed away and watched him struggle his way to freedom on his own.

I mean, he got himself into that mess so he should figure out how to get himself out of it, right?

Well, after about 5 seconds (yes....just 5 very short seconds) he simply gave up and stood completely still with his head down, stuck between two rocks.

I imagined what was going through his head at that very moment: "Well, I lived a wonderful life. These 3 days were so good with my mom, my brother, and my friends. I had hoped for a longer life but I am thankful for all that I have experienced."

Lorraine and I slowly walked back over to the rocks and watched the little guy just standing there without even a struggle.

Compassion filled my heart, and I decided to help, so I just put my hand behind his little butt and gave him a gentle push forward and "POP" his head came free and I lifted him up and set him on top of the big flat rock.

Little Homer was wagging his tail and he was so happy to be free and to be on top of the big rock (his humble life goal had actually been achieved!).

As we laughed about this moment, Lorraine and I also reflected on how compassionate God is to us.

We are so thankful that the LORD is our Shepherd. As our Shepherd, he is our helper, provider, protector, restorer, source of all blessings and goodness, and his presence is and will be with us forever.

We truly lack nothing with God as our Shepherd.

Lorraine and I love caring for all of the animals God has given us to steward and care for. We also thank God for the opportunity to learn more about him each day as we shepherd our flocks and herds.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1 ESV

But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
Psalm 3:3 ESV

Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.
Psalm 54:4 ESV

Now, not all of our animals feel that this is "good" and they do not willingly go and they sometimes even protest the arrangement.

However, based on the knowledge and understanding that we have we always do what is best for all of our animals and try our best to keep them safe from predators and from weather.

This past week we have already had 3 sets of lambs born, but since we do not know the exact date the lambs will come we have to always be diligent to keep the ewes in a warm and safe environment to have their babies.

This means that sometimes we decide to "lock them up" overnight if the weather is going to be too cold for babies to survive without assistance.

From learning the hard way, we now know that animals prefer to go out of an area of warmth and safety in order to be alone when they are having their babies.

So the issue is that if the entire flock is already inside the building at night (where it is warm and comfortable) and one goes into labor, that one will often seek a place to be alone which basically means going from the safe and warm shelter to outside in the freezing cold temperatures (which does not give their babies a fair chance at survival).

So, we as stewards make the decision to lock them up in order to keep that one momma from leaving the safety and warmth of the buildings at night.

We know it is not ideal for ewes to have her babies surrounded by other sheep (as momma and babies need to be able to bond without the interference and confusion of others) but we also know the babies will have little to no chance of surviving if born in the freezing cold weather so we do what we can for the best of the babies and the momma when the weather is dangerous.

This last week we have had two sets of twin lambs born overnight in freezing temps but the mommas were safely locked up in a warm and cozy shelter with heat lamps to keep the lambs warm.

It is exciting to go to the sheep pen in the mornings and be greeted by new baby lambs ready to meet us for the first time with curiosity and wagging tails.

The Bible often speaks of God as our refuge, our safe place, our rock, our shelter, and our help. For those who seek him and trust him as a refuge (safe place) he provides protection, care, help, and deliverance.

These verses below are a beautiful reminder of God's care and protection as our Shepherd and the one who loves us and cares for us and wants the very best for us.

May they bring you comfort and peace as you rest in the care of the one who made you and the one who loves you deeply - The Great Shepherd our LORD Jesus.

God just asks us to trust him - trust that he knows what is best for us and fully rest in him as our refuge (safe place).

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1 ESV

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord , “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
Psalm 91:1-4 ESV

I love you, O Lord , my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Psalm 18:1-2 ESV

You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
Psalm 32:7 ESV

Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.
Psalm 54:4 ESV

Know that the Lord , he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Psalm 100:3 ESV

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:14-15 ESV

However, it was not until Lorraine and I started raising sheep that I truly understood the amazing statements that Jesus is making in John 10 about him as the Good Shepherd who knows his sheep.

Jesus also says:

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.
John 10:27-30 ESV

"My sheep hear my voice....and they follow me."

Jesus is describing a characteristic of sheep but he is also saying that this is true of all who know Jesus and believe in him and follow him as true disciples.

Our sheep truly do know Lorraine and my voice.

They respond to us and they know us.

It is interesting when we have farm visits because we always tell visitors about how tame the sheep are and how they love for us to come in and give them back and neck scratchies.

However, when we have visitors with us, who the sheep do not know, they become more skittish and afraid.

They realize that there is someone they don't know and they are very cautious.

Our sheep will run to us whenever we come close to their pen or come in but they hesitate and sometimes even stay away when a stranger is around.

Watching the Sheep

My mom and dad really enjoy watching the sheep from their house.

They tell us often that they always know when we are out and about doing something and even where we are on the farm when we are outside.

My parents say that when we are outside, the sheep are constantly watching us.

They know where we are at and keep their eyes on us, constantly moving around to the part of their pen closest to us or where they can watch us the best.

They watch us while we do chores on our side of the farm, then as we start to head over to their side of the farm (for a few minutes when they cannot see us) they listen for us to know that we are coming.

My mom says the sheep will move to the other side of the pen and watch for us to round the corner of the barn.

So, my parents learned that if they ever need to know where we are they just have to watch the sheep.

This should be true of us as sheep in the flock of the Good Shepherd, Jesus.

We should constantly have our eyes fixed on him, listening to his voice and following him.

If the world ever wonders "Where is Jesus?" all they should need to do is watch his sheep to point to him.

Our sheep love us because they know us, they trust us, and they know we are their shepherds and so they follow us.

We know Jesus because we are his, and because we are his we are free to love him and trust him as our shepherd....and follow him.

Jesus is always with us.

He never leaves us or forsakes us (like a hired hand who does not own the sheep would do in times of trouble - John 10:12-13).

His care for us is perfect and good.

-Jeffrey

We love to give them lots of hugs and back and neck scratches.

We love to provide them with the best quality hay and good green pastures for them to eat.

We love to spoil them with goodness by giving them treats whenever we can (especially milkweed, sunflowers, and all of the most bizarre weeds that no other animals would eat - the goats think almost any weeds we can find around the farm are the most amazing treats).

Our goats also love bananas! Yep...bananas.

Every so often we delight in giving them a special treat of bananas and enjoy watching the absolute joy the goats have in eating their banana treats.

We are good shepherds, who love our sheep and goats and we want the best for them.

We delight in them just because they are ours and we love caring for them.

However, we do have a few goats and sheep that are more on the shy side and are therefore a bit less trusting of us than the others.

That is ok, that is their personality and we understand that it takes some longer to learn to trust in us as their shepherd and to realize that we are safe and good and that all that we do is for their good and their benefit.

When we bless our goats and sheep with special treats and back scratches we offer those blessings to all (even the shy ones like Pua).

Sadly, the shy ones often miss out on the fullness of our blessings as they do not want to eat the treats from our hands and they miss out on the amazing feeling of our neck and back scratches.

Note: We assume that our back and neck scratches are amazing because most of our goats just "soak it up".

You can even see their eyes just roll back when we find the right spots!

So, some goats and sheep experience our goodness and love to the fullest and the more shy and untrusting ones still experience all of our love and goodness but differently.

All of this sounds similar to how the Bible describes the LORD as our Shepherd.

All through the Scriptures God delights in caring for his people with his goodness, blessings and love.

God is described as a shepherd who gathers his sheep and satisfies them with his goodness.

The LORD made us all and we are His and we are all fully dependent on Him for all things and he delights in us.

Wow!

That just blows my mind but it also is so incredibly awesome that God delights in me and loves me and is for me.

God works all things for my good.

I desire to be the kind of sheep in God's fold who runs to him and is satisfied by his goodness!!!!

With the LORD as my Shepherd, I truly lack nothing.

- Jeffrey

I love that our goats and sheep see us as a safe place to be in times of danger or perceived threat.

As I read through the Psalms, there are so many references to God as our refuge, fortress, stronghold, rock, etc...

Just like our sheep and goats run to us as their refuge, shield, and safe place, I need to constantly be looking to God as my refuge, my rock, and my safe place.

God is our strength and help in times of trouble.

He is my safe place.

So no matter what we go through in life, God is with us and we can continually run to him and find refuge from all that we face in this life.

- Jeffrey

Psalm 18:1-2 (ESV)

1 I love you, O Lord, my strength.

2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Psalm 46:1 (ESV)

1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Psalm 71:3a (ESV)

3 Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come;

Psalm 100:3 (ESV)

3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

I have noticed that when I lead our goats or sheep to a new location (a new pen or a new pasture) that they are not familiar with, they are nervous and fearful.

When I leave them they are unsettled and spend most of their time looking for me and yelling for me to come back.

They do not feel safe or comfortable.

When I am not around they will not graze and they want to go back to a place they know and are familiar with.

However, if I stay with them, they settle down and start grazing.

When the shepherd is with them they feel safe and they enjoy the good grass that I have led them to.

How about us?

The wonderful truth is that our Shepherd (Jesus) never leaves us. His presence is always with us and that changes everything (just like it does for our flocks). His presence with us brings us peace, comfort, safety, healing, contentment, and rest.

He makes us lie down in green pastures and leads us beside quiet waters. He restores our souls (Psalm 23).

It is amazing to me how much our flocks long for my wife and I to be with them.

They know our voices and recognize us and we bring comfort to them.

They depend on us.

The truth is that I am fully dependent on God (who is my Shepherd) and His care for me.

As my sheep and goats keep their eyes on me and look to me for their provision, safety, and care, may I walk through this life constantly keeping my eyes on Jesus for my provision, safety, and care every day.

I hope the same for you too.

- Jeffrey