A friend of mine told me of an artist friend of hers who was working on a portrait of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. The artist had been to Israel to get an accurate view of the sort of sheep that are there, and had returned to finish the picture in the U.S. It was to be a gift to her church to hang in the narthex. The artist had prayed over every aspect of the picture, and she felt sure that the Lord had inspired the face of Jesus, as well as the composition of the picture. I was curious, and when my friend asked if I would like to see a print of the final picture, I said, “Yes!”

Sometime later my friend called to say that she would stop by my house and bring a print of the portrait of Jesus . I was quite interested, partly because of the hint of supernatural participation in the work. When my friend arrived and drew out the print from its sleeve, I could see that it was done skillfully and well. The sheep were outstanding and the landscape looked authentic to Israel, but when I saw the face, I was stunned. The figure carrying a sheep on his shoulders looked exactly like Kevin Costner, the actor and movie star! I couldn’t help staring, but didn’t know what to say. I praised the quality of the art, and asked if the artist had used a model . “Oh,, no,” my friend said, “She had a vision of this very scene.” “Oh,” I said, “Has anyone seen any resemblances in this?” “Well, some have seen a resemblance to Kevin Costner,” she answered. “Oh,” I said, and thanked her for bringing the print for me to see. A great deal of time, energy, cost and talent had gone into this painting.

Our spiritual, praying lives remain intensely personal, even when we pray with others. Jesus spoke to the issue of praying: Our Father. . .your name. . . your kingdom. . . your will. . . give,. . . forgive. . . and lead us. . . (Matthew 6:9-13) Jesus ‘ personal habit of praying alone to His Father inspired the disciples’ request: Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples. ( Luke 11:1) The Lord’s prayer is a personal address to God which acknowledges His lordship over the disciple, at the same time that it expresses our relationship as children of the Lord. It places that relationship at the center of the prayer. If it remains at the center, we don’t have to worry about the fruitfulness of our labors or of our lives. In an increasingly invasive world of thoughts and images, more than ever we need the one who taught us to pray and who is and will always be to us the Good Shepherd.

Love in Him,

Prue