The Increase Sample

MATT HASSELBECK

SHEEP WITHOUT A SHEPHERD

After being drafted and spending three years with the Green Bay Packers, I was traded to Seattle and given my first chance to be starting quarterback. While in Seattle I met several people who helped me grow in my understanding of what it meant to follow and obey Jesus. I used to look at evangelism as something somebody else needs to do, or something someone else is already doing. A conversation with fellow quaterback Trent Dilfer helped me realize that it was my responsibility to have an answer for the hope that lives inside of me.

The scene in Matthew 9 must have been painful for Jesus. As he travels from one small Third World village to another, he notices the quality of people’s lives. What he sees breaks his heart. You can read it for yourself below.

To discover what Jesus did, we need to pay more attention to what Jesus didn’t do. He saw a real need, but he didn’t jump into the immediate situation and fix the need himself. Instead, he calls others to go and meet these very real needs right in front of him. Jesus calls others to become the answer to his prayers.

It’s the same way with us today. Jesus works in his people, through his people, and even in spite of his people. He calls us to make him known to a world that appears as sheep without a shepherd. It’s everyone's job, not some people's job.

My video story at theincrease.com explains how this played out in my life. One conversation at work in Seattle gave me a new perspective on my role as a follower of Christ and helped prepare me to fulfill that purpose.