Hunted by the Hound of Heaven: Story 1 - Good Shephard

Story 1 – Good Shephard

In the Kingdom of the Lord, everyone is given their job by the King.

One boy was so excited to finally serve that he went straight up to the King with a smile on his face, bowed down on both knees, and said, “I am ready to serve you, my King.”

His parents and the rest of the children there were shocked at the boy’s display, but not the King. The King gave him a blessing in silence, handed him his pitchfork for his job as a farmer and hugged him before sending him off. The boy became a marvelous worker as a farmer and one of the best. He joyfully did his job day in and out as every piece of work, every action that he did was for the King. For his services, the King graciously rewarded the boy with whatever his heart desired.

When asked for what he wanted, the boy said, “I want to faithfully serve you for all eternity. Please make it so I can do this.”

Moved by his request, the King gave the boy a blessing that few men received. The years flew by as the boy got older and older until his unrelenting energy for work burned out and got him sick. Now a teenager, the boy watched from his room as replacement farmers did his job for him. Not only did each worker do better than he did, but they also were praised higher and given more gifts than he. After some time passed, the boy felt forgotten. The only people that came to him were the people who gave him his food and medication and even they left him to help and cheer on the new workers.

“What is even the point of me even being here?” the boy questioned, “These workers replaced me and then some by doing a better job than I ever could. The King has no use of a mediocre in His Kingdom such as I. I was never a great worker. If I went back to work now, I would only hold everyone back.”

The boy snuck out of his house with nothing but his pitchfork and left the gates of the Kingdom.

As he looked back on the shining Kingdom, he said, “They’re better off without me. My replacements are already there and doing a better job than me, so my skills and even my existence is obsolete.”

The boy journeyed far from the Kingdom and came across a small farm. Since he was hungry, he worked for his food and because of his service, he was offered a job and shelter there.

“Please, stay and work for me. I’ll give you anything you want,” the owner said.

“No, I’m an obsolete worker worth nothing. Please, do yourself a favor and find someone else,” the boy said as he headed out.

Along the road, the boy came across a man being mugged by thieves. With his pitchfork, the boy fought off the thieves and scared them away.

“Thank you so much for saving me, boy. Come home with me and I’ll make you a feast worthy of someone as brave as you,” the mugged man said.

“Thank you for the offer, but I am not worthy of your gift. Please give it to someone who is homeless instead. Surely, they are more worthy than I,” the boy said as he kept wandering.

Again, the boy found another person in need. A woman fell near a cliff and was unable to climb up. The boy used his pitchfork to lift her up and out of danger.

“Thank you so much for helping me, good Samaritan! I’ll give you anything you want!” she said.

“Please, don’t give me anything. I’m not worth it,” the boy said before he walked away.

He didn’t get too far from the woman before he saw a figure that was walking from the setting sun. As the figure got closer, the boy couldn’t help but get on his knees. The King traveled by Himself all the way from the Kingdom only accompanied by His white snake and golden dove that He’s always with. The boy was immobilized by fear and could only keep his head on the ground. The King stopped in front of the boy who offered up his pitchfork.

“My King, I am not a worthy servant. Give my pitchfork to someone who is. Perhaps one of my replacements will make better use of it than I,” the boy said.

The King took the pitchfork then placed it back into the boy’s hands while he gripped his hands tightly. This made tears begin to flow from the boy’s eyes.

“I’m truly sorry for what I’ve done. Please forgive me and allow me to work in Your glorious Kingdom again! I’ll do anything!”

The King picked up the boy from his feet and embraced him. He then took Him back to the Kingdom where a coming home celebration was held for the boy. The boy went back to work as a farmer who did his job better than ever. Not even his replacements could keep up with him. By the end of his life, the boy became one of the kingdom’s best farmers.

Another lost sheep was one who dwelt in another kingdom. The kingdom itself was under siege by the King’s.

As the lost sheep recounts, the gates that were made of the finest materials of the earth were being broken down as if they were made of straw. We had lost all our battles against the King and now His armies were cutting through ours and soon the entire kingdom will burn down. So many other kingdoms fell beneath us so easily, but not the King’s. When we waged war against him, no army or weapon of ours could match His. I was sitting and watched it all in the safety of my home. My anonymous suggestion that I sent to the rulers was ripped up and mocked. I thought it would be best to negotiate peace with the king, but they didn’t want to hear it.

The rulers only wanted to slay the King and His people to make us the kingdom above all. What fools. Other people in the kingdom have thought the same as I and have tried to escape, but the rulers cut down everyone who opposed them. There is no way for me to escape. Either the King’s army will cut me down or my own. That was until I heard a peculiar knock at my window. To my shock, it was the King Himself with His snake and dove.

I fell back and said, “Please, grant me mercy, King!”

He held out His hand.

“Do You want me to join You?”

He shook His head to tell me yes.

“What need do you have of a lowly sinner such as I?”

He only answered by extending His hand further.

“If You wish it to be so, then I will follow You.”

I took His hand and He carried me out of my house. As we walked the streets of the burning city, His troops ignored me and protected me when the soldiers of my kingdom saw me defecting to the King’s side. The King even killed my attackers who got close enough to strike me. I wanted to look back at the destruction that was happening, but He turned my head forward. It’s probably best if I didn’t look anyway.

When we were outside the kingdom’s gates, His troops on the outside congratulated me for choosing the right side and repenting and gave me drink and food.

I looked around then asked the King, “Are You going to save anyone else? I don’t see anyone else here from my kingdom.”

He shook His head.

“No? Out of everyone in the kingdom, You came only to save me?”

He shook His head to say yes. My knees grew weak as I bowed down to Him and kissed His feet.

“Th-thank you, my King! I will always faithfully serve You for this unimaginably great kindness that You have done for me.”

His troops were exiting the kingdom as it burned to ash and fell around them. Today, the once glorious kingdom is ash and rubble and those who try to scavenge its remains or build atop it fall dead within a day.

Yet another lost sheep was in a bar that was in a small shanty town with the worst of sinners. The topic of the King came up. Some people in the bar exited it while others drank more. Others dared to talk falsely about Him.

“He’s a tyrant! When He isn’t sitting on His throne all day, He’s waging war and burning down kingdoms.”

“I hate the fact that He destroys others who disagree with Him or refuse to be allies. He treats them like villains. Doesn’t He know that not everything that He thinks is a sin is evil?”

“He’s supposed to be this great King that helps the innocent and poor, but all I see in the world is suffering and poverty. I think He’s hurt more people than He’s helped. He’s such a hypocrite.”

“Don’t you have anything to say about Him, mister? You know more about Him than we do,” a scantily dressed woman said to a man in long rags.

The man in rags sat and drank with a scared expression on his face while appearing to be still.

“You were a high priest or something, weren’t you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the man finally responded.

“Yeah, you got to talk to Him yourself.”

“You got the wrong man.”

“Those robes you’re wearing are just dirty priest robes, aren’t they? You must know something.”

“Do I look like a man who would?”

“…I guess not.”

After a couple seconds passed, a man in the bar asked, “It’s been awfully quiet the past few minutes.”

“Yeah, I don’t think the town’s been this quiet.”

“Quit complaining. I actually like this silence.”

To their surprise, the King walked into the bar with his snake and dove on Him. Everybody except for the man in robes moved in shock. The King stood silently looking around the bar as the air in the building seemingly disappeared as everyone struggled to breathe. The foolish woman went up to the King and hit Him before spitting in His face.

“You’re supposed to be a forgiving fella, aren’t ya? Well, forgive me,” she said before hitting Him again.

Her hand that hit the King started bleeding and before she knew it, every part of her was bleeding until she bled to death on the spot. Another man tried to fight the King by throwing a bottle of alcohol on Him then threw a match to burn Him.

“Burn in Hell!” the man said.

The fire did nothing to Him while an invisible fire burned the man who attacked Him. No matter what the others tried to do, the invisible fires on the man would not go out before the fires subsided on the King. Everyone else sat quietly in fear as the King approached the man in rags. The King tapped the man on the shoulder then held out His hand.

“You know what I did, my King. My sins are horrendous and worth an immediate execution. I’m surprised I even managed to live this long with You knowing what I did.”

The King still held out His hand in silence.

“…and still You give me the chance to repent and pay for my sins. Your mercy truly knows no bounds. Please, forgive me.”

The man in rags takes the hand of the King and walks away with Him back to His Kingdom. Along the way, the scorching heat of the sun and thirst for alcohol attack him but looking at the King gives him strength. By the time the King returned from the long journey, the man in rags looked nothing like his former alcoholic self and his robes were as white as snow. A celebration was made for the man before he went back to his priestly duties.