The Grass Isn’t Always Greener Series

Whoever always looks for greener grass on the other side will never be able to appreciate the green grass that was under their feet the entire time.

The wisdom of this saying is that we are wise not to focus on finding greener pastures somewhere else, but instead to nurture and grow the vitality of what we already have.

The opposite of the belief that "The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" would be "Appreciate what you have." Believing that “The grass is always greener on the other side” could also be a cautionary tale, to cherish what you have.

Clearly some people will do just about anything to get to what they think are greener pastures, but the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence. If we want to graze in greener pastures, then we have to follow our Good Shepherd. Jesus will lead us. But we have to follow him. In order to understand what it means to follow the Good Shepherd, let’s look at the characteristics of sheep. That's who the Bible says we are. We are sheep. And sheep need a flock. Sheep need a fold…that's a place of security. The third thing we need to understand about sheep, in order to understand ourselves, is that sheep are easily influenced.

We are easily influenced. Maybe not all the time. We tend to think we make our way; we make our own decisions, no one could unduly influence us. But the Bible says we are like sheep, so easily influenced. Matthew 10:16 Jesus says, "Be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." This means to be careful not to be taken advantage of, but also not to manipulate others. In a flock, when a few sheep head off in the wrong direction, what happens? The other sheep look over and think, hey, they're on to something. I need to go check it out. We do the same thing. If you don't believe me, look at marketing and advertising. Look at the crowd mentality. Look at peer pressure and how we constantly put that pressure on ourselves wanting to fit in. God knows us. We are like sheep. We are easily influenced. We a lot of the time go along with the crowd.

That's why we need a shepherd. We're sheep. We're vulnerable. We're easily influenced. But Jesus can meet the needs in our lives. Just how does the Good Shepherd do that? John 10:2-3 says: “But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” That's the way it is for you and me. There are a lot of voices in the world. But the voice of Jesus Christ is clear. It's distinct from any other voice. If we want greener pastures, then we have to listen to his voice.

Jesus leads us. Jesus gives clear direction for our lives. Have you noticed how tiring it is when you don't know where you're going next? Confusion is exhausting. That's why playing defense in football is so tiring. They don't know where the offense is going, so they have to work harder. But Jesus clears up the confusion with his direction. He says, "I lead my sheep." John 4:10 says, " And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice." How do you notice Jesus leads his sheep? He doesn't drive them. He doesn't walk beside them. Jesus leads out ahead of us. To lead the sheep, the shepherd has to go first. That's a good deal for the sheep. If there's danger out ahead of them, the shepherd will deal with it first.