An all-age talk for a baptism service, St Peter's church, Bramley. 19 October 2025
Reading: Luke 15:3-7
I would like to introduce you to a friend. This is Sleepy Shy Sheep. She’s called that for two reasons. For one thing, she is shy, which means she prefers to be alone. So when the flock is moving from one place to another, she prefers to follow on a little way behind. And she’s also sleepy, and likes to lie down for a rest now and then.
Well, one day Sleepy Shy Sheep was following the flock as usual. She couldn’t see the shepherd, because he was out in front leading the way. The path was uphill, and she got tired and decided to take a nap. Of course, when she woke up, the rest of the flock was nowhere in sight.
It was nearly dark by now. Sleepy Shy Sheep started to panic. “Baaa!” she cried. A few seconds later she heard a distant echo. “Baaa!” Now, she has always thought that the other sheep don’t like her because of her sleepiness, and that the shepherd never takes any notice of her, being so far behind. But that isn’t true. Sheep naturally flock together and act together, so they had noticed that Sleepy Shy Sheep wasn’t with them and wanted her to catch up with them. So she trotted off towards the sound of their voices, and after several minutes of this to-and-fro bleating, she managed to find them.
But there was a problem. The rest of the flock had gone through a gate and the shepherd had shut it behind them. Not to stop the lost sheep getting through it, just to stop the others going back the wrong way. Cue a lot more calls of “baa!” on both sides. So what happened next? The shepherd came back from the front of the flock to see what all the noise was about. He ran to the gate and opened it. He picked the little sheep up and put her on his shoulder – like this – saying “O you lovely little lamb, fell asleep again did you? Never mind, I love you so much, I’ll make sure you’re always close to me from now on”.
The rest of the flock were also happy to see Sleepy Shy Sheep among them. Some of the older ewes promised to keep their eyes on her as well, and said they would call the shepherd for help if they ever saw her falling behind or going to sleep.
Do you ever find yourself in a situation like that yourself? Cut off from the people you should belong with. Maybe because you think you don’t fit in. Maybe because you did something wrong, or something silly, or perhaps like this little sheep, just fell behind and didn’t keep up with what was happening? The chances are that people did notice, that someone is looking out for you and just wants you to come back into the fold. Because even if a few people don’t like you – and there may be some – there will be a lot of people who think you are wonderful.
The same is true of God. So many people have a wrong idea of God, thinking that because we all do silly or naughty things sometimes, or don’t fit in with whatever most people are doing, he must not like us. So we tend to keep our distance, keep our head down, try not to be noticed in case God punishes us.
But nothing could be further from the truth! There are 198 references to sheep in the Bible. Many of them compare people to sheep and God to a shepherd. Jesus called himself the Good Shepherd, the one who knows every sheep by name, loves them and goes out of his way to find those that fall behind. The Bible story today ends with everyone rejoicing at the one lost sheep that is found. That is what we are doing today. When someone is baptised, when someone makes their own promises to follow Jesus or promises to help a young person do so, it’s a time for everyone to rejoice – their own family, but also the church family. Here’s something to think about before you leave church today: where are you in this story? Are you the sleepy, shy sheep who is so far from the shepherd that you can’t even see him? Or one trying to catch up but just needing to be let through the gate to join the rest of the flock? Are you one of the older sheep, ready to welcome the stray and make sure they fit in and don’t fall asleep by the wayside ever again? Or, perhaps you may see yourself at the gate, longing to join the flock. If so, then just ask Jesus to open that gate, carry you on his shoulder and show you his love and acceptance. Baaa…men.