The Sheepfold and the Voice of the Shepherd

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Stone sheepfold John 10:22-30 Recently my boys have been spending a great deal of time outside in the area that will soon be transformed into our garden. They spend endless hours digging in the dirt for worms. They then promptly take those worms and throw them to the chickens. It amazes me how even chickens can learn to recognize sounds or voices. My oldest makes this funny high-pitched sound when he comes out of the house and heads toward the coop. The chickens practically fall over themselves running toward the fence or out of the coop when they hear him making his sound. They know there is food to follow! In Sunday's Gospel Jesus tells us that, "My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me." and "I am the gate for the sheep." Today, again, Jesus mentions that His sheep know His voice and follow Him.  In these few verses we learn that Jesus is both gate and shepherd for the sheep. In those days and even today in some places, a sheepfold w
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Another Random Post

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When I (Jim) began this blog years ago I had pie-in-the-sky ideas of an awesome blog with millions of followers.  Well, maybe not, I think I just wanted an outlet for my writing and a place to record the events of family life.

Over the course of time I've stepped away from the blog and turned to other outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, and every other distraction.  Yes, I'm now calling them distractions.  I know I'm crazy but I believe that I only have so much brain power for each day.  I also believe that God wants me to use that power to create a better world in my own unique way.

What I've discovered, however, is that much of my day is literally spent checking in and up on social media sites.  I find myself posting more one-line, witty comments than well thought out pieces that could help another person even if it's just helping them smile. I've also noticed that many of those one-line witty comments, or pictures of various life flotsam and jetsam garnish more "likes" than anything of deeper value or importance.

I also believe that Facebook as well as the others want it to be exactly this way.  What was once truly social media is no more.  Algorithms decide if a post, picture, or comment is worthy of our viewing.  What once truly went "viral" because of it's uniqueness is now a "sponsored" post.

Furthermore, I think that many of us, okay most of us are being conditioned by these distractions, outlets, sites, to have an extremely short attention span.  For every person who read that last sentence there were probably 10 who didn't make it that far because they were not "entertained".  Who has time to read The Mysterious Island when there are so many food pictures to look at on Instagram?

I hope that this short post will be the beginning of my "disconnection" from a world that lives for "panem et circenses" and no longer lives for truth.  Call me an Amish-Catholic, backwards, or crazy but I believe many of us are called to a Benedictine type of life, one that is preparing to rebuild the culture when it falls.

Withdraw from these distractions is not easy.  I like bread (mainly liquid) and circenses (mainly college football) as much as the next person but it must be done.  I will still post pictures and writings mainly on this blog or the farm blog.  I will also use our Facebook pages occasionally (Real Life Rosary) & (Amazing Grasses).

I hope you will continue to read the blog and grow from it.  It's a good outlet for me as I'm working on a novel that I hope to have finished this year.  Even better than the blog is a handwritten letter and I will always encourage any personal correspondence (PO BOX 390, LOGAN, OH 43138-0390).  Please keep in touch as we continue ora et labora....


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