At 6am on the day after Boxing Day bank holiday the sheep scanner man rolled into the farmyard. It was pitch black apart from the lights in the big barn where Caring For Life’s flock of Lleyn ewes were waiting for him. This is the moment of truth where we discover if our sheep are expecting lambs and via the wonders of Ultra-sound scanning “see” how many lambs each ewe is carrying. There has been much planning and work in the preceding weeks and months, giving regular health checks, balancing nutrition, consideration of hormone levels and choosing the right ram for the various individual sheep. Only now will we know if our efforts are bearing fruit.
It reminded me that there’s so much happening in secret, in the hidden place that is only seen by the expert who can detect and quantify the new life out of sight.
And a similar process is at work in the lives of those in our care. Our beneficiaries are the focus of so much thought and care, with a wide variety of inputs into their lives - engagement with projects on the farm (pre-Covid), pastoral support through their key workers, opportunities to engage with Bible study, having prayers said for them regularly. All of this love, care and conversation is working together with God’s Spirit inside a person, out of sight. Only God can see into the soul of an individual, he is able to detect spiritual life and it’s been a tremendous joy for us to see new life emerging from the depths of an individuals heart.
It’s a delight to work with our sheep, especially at lambing time with all the new life around us! But that is nothing compared to the joy of seeing people born again into God’s family, we’re so thankful to the LORD for all that he is doing in the secret places, saving and transforming lives.