THREE ANGELS BROADCASTING NETWORK DEVOTIONAL
The Good Shepherd.

By J. D. Quinn

February 20th, 2026

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27

The smell of spring was in the air, fresh and green, as morning dawned on the Quinn Farm in Texas. Baa, baa, baa, a ewe bleated for her newborn lamb. Baa, baa, the baby responded. The constant cry of communication, multiplied by hundreds of pairs of sheep, filled the air with a near-deafening sound during lambing season.

There was always plenty to do on our farm, and it was my morning duty to check the flock. A ewe might need assistance in bringing her newborn into the world, another might need a cut or sore treated. I relish and remember it all as though it were yesterday, because those were some of the most enjoyable experiences of my life.

These pleasant memories resurfaced the other day when I spoke to Richard. He had wandered away from his church congregation and now felt alone and outside the fold. “Will Jesus take me back?” he wondered.

I opened my Bible and began describing the love of our Good Shepherd. “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.” Matthew 18:12–14 (NIV).

I paused for a moment, then asked, “Do you see how much Jesus loves you, Richard?”

Silence followed, broken by his weeping. Oh thank You, Holy Spirit, I thought, Thank you for doing that which only You can do—touch the very core of our being!

As a young shepherd on the farm, I spent many hours searching for ewes and their lambs. Preferring privacy before and after giving birth, the mamas would run off and hide, not realizing their separation from the flock put them and their offspring in danger of being attacked by wild dogs and coyotes. But our family had a special call we used to get our livestock’s attention. They associated this call with food and safety, so when I called within their range of hearing, they would usually answer. But it wasn’t always a happy ending. Some ewes died giving birth. In their time of need they had hidden from their shepherd. I still sought after them, though, and I would retrieve their young and bring them into the fold. But it was difficult to get another ewe to suckle an orphaned lamb, and often I would have to bottle feed as many as 20 lambs or more! Now I was not only their shepherd, but I was also their adoptive parent.

“Richard, Jesus said, ‘I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own…. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:14, 27 (NKJV). He wants you to read your Bible and listen for His voice of guidance. He will never leave us or forsake us, and He passionately pursues us. He protects us, He adopts us, He feeds us, and cares for us.”

My story consoled Richard greatly, and I was thankful that God had used me as a shepherd. My farm today is different—it’s spiritual, not physical. But I thank Jesus for the experience I had as a young man dealing with real sheep and their lambs, because I know what it’s like to physically carry a lamb back to camp. I know what it’s like to nurture and mend their wounds. And I know what it’s like to aid the lost and dying, bringing them comfort and peace.

In Hebrews 13:20-21, the Bible Says:

“Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.”