Dear Cleo,
This letter comes to you in two parts. There is the grown-up bit at the start for old people and then there is the nice bit which is a story especially for you.
Let’s get the old people bit over with first.
You came into this world with much anticipation and joy. You were looked forward to and wanted and loved even before you emerged from your Mum’s tummy. Even before you cried loudly in the labour ward and the first bottle of pop went … well…. it went Pop!
You were baptised or Christened on April 21st 2024. In Churchy terms, it was the 4th Sunday after Easter that year or the fourth Sunday in Eastertide or Good Shepherd Sunday.
It’s very hard to describe to old people what Jesus is like so there are lots of times when we say that Jesus is like… Like a Good friend, or like a really good parent or like a fantastic older brother who sticks up for you.
On the Sunday you were baptised we said that Jesus was like a Good Shepherd or a good farmer.
Someone who knows each and every sheep or person. He knows what is good for us and where we need to be at any given moment of the day or night.
The Good Farmer speaks to us and sometimes it's a bit hard to hear him so we have to practice being quiet and being very still in our hearts and outside when we are playing. This is very difficult for us especially when there is so much great stuff on TV and good friends to play with.
Jesus the Good Shepherd also leads us or shows us where we are supposed to go into the future and somehow (you’ll have to ask him how he does this) he is also behind us shooing us along or encouraging us. Then it gets really tricky because he also walks alongside us. Sometimes he helps us up if we fall over and skin our knee or if we feel lonely or just because he really likes being with us and giggling with us.
You see what a tricky but thoroughly enjoyable Farmer Jesus is?
Sometimes life plays tricks on us and things don’t seem to go the way we think they should. This is where Jesus the Good Farmer really comes into his own. We can rely on him when we have all sorts of hard questions and especially when we have our cranky pants on and are feeling cross.
The priests, people, your parents and Godparents are also a bit like shepherds. They love you very much and are there to help you and support you. You can easily see them and listen to them and ask them all sorts of tricky questions. They will try to show you what Jesus is like by the way they care for you.
Jesus church is always open for you and will always welcome you. That’s a really important thing to remember.
Phew… that was the older person’s bit. Now comes the story.
Once upon a time, in a place not very far from where you are reading this, there was a really great Shepherd. He had exactly one hundred sheep. He knew each of them by name, he loved them so much that He even knew what each one liked for breakfast and how they liked to have their wool clipped.
Each day he couldn’t wait to get up and go and count all his sheep and give them their crumpets, vegemite toast and coffee. But one morning … Uh Oh.. one of his sheep was missing. The Sheep's name was David and Jesus the good farmer was really Really sad because David was missing. Jesus the good farmer did not waste a single minute. He began looking for David immediately.
He went down to the hen house because he knew David liked to play with the chickens. He looked in every nesting box even though he kind of knew David the sheep wouldn’t fit in the nesting box. No David. Oh Dear where can he be? He went down to the haystack because he knew that sometimes David liked to go and have a little old persons snooze at the back of the haystack. But no… David was not there. The Good Farmer Jesus did not give up. He went to the prickly bramble bush (which he didn’t like very much) and looked all through the bush; but no David.
Then he thought.. I wonder if David has gone down to the very back paddock to try and get a drink from the grungy dam. It takes the good Farmer Jesus a long time to walk all the way down to the dam. It is very hot and it is a very rocky path but eventually he gets there. And there is David in the middle of the murky dam crying and crying, because he is stuck in the stinky mud and can’t get out.
The good Farmer Jesus dives straight into the very muddy icky water. Kersplosh! He rescues David.
He carries David on his shoulders all the way back to the farmhouse even though David is dripping with muddy water and smells disgusting. Then the Good farmer Jesus calls all his farming friends and throws a wonderful big party with sausages and sauce and fairy bread and sausage rolls and chips and lots of fizzy drinks that make you go burp.
May you have lots of great parties Cleo and may you always remember that Jesus the good Farmer is with you at every party.