Earlier this month in some parks, farms, and yards of the UK, British sheep have been experiencing a new sense of freedom. Even as parks and open spaces are shut down due to coronavirus, and people are secluded in their homes, sheep have taken to roaming about the newly open spaces. But rather than wandering aimlessly through the fields, it seems, sheep have been seeking out children’s playgrounds, and have begun [wait for it] to play! It appears, their favorite activity is to take turns riding the “roundabout!”
You may remember that piece of playground equipment called the “roundabout” from your childhood. I’ve pictured one below.*
In playing on a roundabout, a group of children typically sits on the base, while others spin the wheel. After a while, others get to sit on the base, while still others do the spinning. It appears, sheep are smarter than we thought! In a 40-acre farm park near Monmouthshire, a flock of sheep were spotted pushing each other on the play area roundabout two days in a row. After that, other sheep too were seen playing on a playground roundabout in Preston, and still more in Debbie Ellis’s yard.**
I don’t know about you, but for me, this certainly redefines for me what it means to be a “sheep!”
This week’s scriptures are all about sheep! Both the Hebrew scriptures and the Christian gospels refer to God’s people (and followers of Jesus) as sheep. In the past, sheep were referred to as rather unintelligent animals that wander aimlessly away if the Shepherd is not there to guide them. Yet, it seems, given the opportunity, sheep would rather play organized games than simply wander aimlessly through the fields. They apparently have a sense of community, a passion for assisting each other, and definitely a zeal for fun.
Open up the gate, and sheep will find a new way to play!
Should we be surprised? The human spirit too has a natural inclination for making the best of new situations and predicaments, for making fun out of fumes. All you have to do is look at the television and the internet right now to see the amazing creativity and innovation sparked by our coronavirus seclusion. We simply will not be held down. We will always find a “roundabout” way to do anything we desire to do.
Human beings, though we can be fearful at times, are also the most adaptable creatures on the planet! When our bodies feel inhibited, when we feel we have no control over parts of our lives, something happens to our minds and hearts. We look for an open window or a deserted field and we find a new way to play. We look for a faux canvas, and we find a way to paint a masterpiece. We look for a tin can or wooden sticks and a steel drum, and we begin to make music. We sing. We dance. We play. And we typically do it together. When we can’t be face to face, still we find all kinds of ways to connect with each other and most of all, to play!
Years ago, doing things in a roundabout way was not necessarily a positive attribute, but today, it’s the mark of heightened innovation! In fact, all great inventions were brought to fruition by people who went about things in a “roundabout” way, who saw “outside the box” or “outside the rules” and who created new ways, roundabout ways, to “play” the game of life.
Human beings will always look for an opening in the wall, a crack in the sidewalk, a door never opened, a field never explored, and we will dare to enter in. This is the exquisiteness of what it means to be part of the human planet.
We embrace the beauty of our humanness when we embrace God, and when we follow Jesus, because for us, God IS that open door that leads to new and exciting pathways. Jesus IS that gateway to life that affords us freedom and exploration of what it means to truly live! Followers of Jesus will dare to enter into that open portal that leads to new life, into that freed up space that allows us room become the best version of ourselves, to exuberantly explore the realms of humanness and the reaches of eternity.
And here’s the reality. We most welcome freedom and community when we are most fenced in, most threatened, most fearful, most alone.
When we are fenced in, when we are inhibited or complacent, creativity seems to burst forth in order to create new hope, new joy, and new excitement, even new forms of community.
The human spirit is a playful spirit, a free spirit. And God celebrates this in us above all else.
God knows, we are people who will seek new pathways when gates are opened and will discover new ways of living when old ones are stymied. Open a door, and we will dare to enter in. Give us the gift of freedom, and we will dare to grasp it by the tail and create new ways to do life.
God gives us the gift of freedom in Jesus not to inhibit us into following blindly and mindlessly, but God gives us the gift of freedom in Jesus, because he will open doors and gates for us when we feel shut in. He will lead the way to open fields and clean waters when are lives have become rancid or stagnant. He helps us discover things to eat when our food for living has run dry. He gives us courage to stand before a common foe and to face it head on. He girds us up and keeps us strong when we need to walk into dangerous situations and deal with unknown assailants. He calls us by name, so He can guide us into new pastures when the old ones become barren and stale. Jesus gives us the freedom of life. It is God’s spirit breathed through us and through our relationship with Jesus that gives us that playful, creative, resilient spirit that will always energize us and renew us in every situation.
To be a “sheep” is not to be complacent, or stupid, or aimless, or helpless. To be a sheep is to be inquisitive, resilient, brave, and exploratory. To be a sheep is to seek out companionship and community, to take advantage of the freedom and protection that God offers us in order to walk in new and dangerous places, to come face to face with our enemies, to romp in grassy meadows and drink freely of waters, to dare to enter into the gate that leads to life, to follow the “voice” of Jesus into wild and wooly places, because we trust Him, and we trust that love, life, and play dwell securely in the future.
There is a reason that Psalm 23 is the most beloved psalm of all time. It is not just that it is comforting, not just that it is vividly beautiful. But it’s a song of daring and courage, of freedom and joy, of bravery in the face of danger, of victory in life. And the gospel in John says the same.
No matter how trapped we feel, fenced in and surrounded by wolves or unseen viral assailants, no matter how confused we feel or worried about our future, no matter what threats lurk outside of our walls, when we hear the voice of Jesus, we know, a door has been opened, and we have a free invitation to enter in. Or shall I say, to enter “out” –to exit our locked rooms and barren pastures, and to go through the gates of life into freedom, into a new and lush pasture of possibilities, a future filled with good food and the freedom to create a new life.
This is the joy Jesus offers. Freedom. Ultimate freedom, not only from our physical ramparts, but from our fear, our solitude, our doubts, our worries, our hunger, our thirst, our boredom, and all the trappings of inhibition, even from our own sins, even from death itself.
All you have to do is look for that open door. Jesus is standing beside it, calling you to enter. Do you have the courage to enter in and to discover a new kind of life?
I say, “go for it!” “I dare you!”
After all, you are a sheep. And in the end, sheep just wanna have fun!
*Photo by Debbie Ellis (UK). She found a group of sheep playing in her yard on her children’s roundabout.
**See article by William Cole from 6 April 2020 in the Daily Mail at www.dailymail.co.uk.